Champion of Chaos
by ShadowReaper52
Summary: Percy, betrayed by all those in his past life accepts the path of the primordials, joining Erebus' army. There he finds a new home. However, he is fired, only to be found by Chaos' Army. He rises up the ranks and eventually becomes the Champion of Chaos. A story of adventures.
1. An Offer

**Chapter 1**

Leaping over the wide gap between the roofs high above the bustling streets below, Percy enjoyed the brief moments of the exhilarating feeling of weightlessness. He tucked into a roll as soon as he landed on the flat roof and continued his journey. As he leapt across more roofs, he admired the view below him which would have made his cousin faint. (cough, cough Thalia) Not that she would ever admit.

A few minutes later, he reached a steep slanting roof leading to a moss covered stone courtyard about three storeys below with about 10 or so young men and women walking and chatting at the edges. Careful not to lose his balance on the way down, Percy cautiously made his way down the tiles. At the bottom of the roof, there was an uncovered roof gutter. Percy clutched it and swung himself over the edge. Holding on tightly with both hands he began to slowly swing back and forth, wincing as he heard some creaking. Deciding that he had enough momentum, he threw himself towards a windowsill in front of him. Keeping his balance, he turned and leapt down to the courtyard.

In the air, he front flipped twice and fell into a roll as he hit the ground, taking away the impact from the landing. He strode behind two people, a young man and woman, engaged in a conversation.

"Boo!" Percy shouted into their ears.

They both leapt into the air, the man shrieking what he would claim to be a _very_ manly shriek.

"Got you guys this time," Percy commented with a grin.

"Yeah, you just surprised us," the woman said.

"Well, that kind of was the point," Percy told them and then turned to the man,"Brian, I never knew you could squeal like that."

"Well-well," the man, Brian spluttered,"it was just a eh hm _manly_ um exclamation of uh surprise."

Percy just smirked. "Well, now we're over that _manly_ episode, lets go!" the woman exclaimed, throwing a _really_ look at Brian.

Percy and Rebecca, the woman, shot out of the courtyard into a narrow alleyway, leaving Brian behind.

"I'm telling you it was a manly excla - oh blast it, they've ditched me again," Brian ran off after them, calling to them in his _very_ manly voice.

Percy whooped loudly as he ran alongside Rebecca. They emerged from the alley, turned right and ran into a waist high fence. Without breaking rhythm, they dived over the fence. Rebecca pulled into a roll and continued on. However, Percy, ever the showoff, cartwheeled twice, then jumped into a mid air flip, then chasing after Rebecca. Brian, who was about 10 metres behind simply leapt clear of the fence, not wanting to be left behind.

They sprinted across the grass to a water pipe on the side of a building. Percy hauled himself up to the roof four storeys up, Rebecca and Brian close behind. They continued onwards, doing crazy and what most people would consider _extremely unsafe_ stunts, jumping off roofs onto the ground far below, scaling tall buildings and walking on tiny ledges of the sides of other buildings.

Later in the day, Percy sat in an unusually deserted part of Central Park. Far away, he could see a playground, full of hawk-eyed parents and energetic children. With a gasp, he recognised one of the parents by her stormy grey eyes and bouncing blonde hair. Annabeth ... the one who had fallen for a second child of Poseidon while he was on a quest to prove his worth to Athena two years ago. When he had returned and found out that the camp had all but forgotten him - the newer campers thought Annabeth's new boyfriend was the two time Saviour of Olympus (they had only been told it was Annabeth's son of Poseidon boyfriend) and most of his mortal friends from the wars had either died from monster attacks (a demigod's life was dangerous, no matter if they had training or not) or had left to seek a _normal_ life in the mortal world.

His immortalised friends - basically all those with positions of leadership in either camp, were part of the Seven or Nico (because he's just cool like that), all had duties and hardly noticed Percy's distress and sadness. What made it worse was that during the immortalisation ceremony, he and Annabeth had both refused but, when he came back, he was told that Annabeth had _changed her mind_ and become a goddess alongside Francis, her boyfriend, for making Athena's favourite daughter _less distracted by the stupidity that is Perseus Jackson._

So Percy had left. However, when he reached his parents' apartment, they had shut him out claiming _no son of ours would do such a horrid thing._ He never got the opportunity to explain or find out what that _horrid thing_ was. He guessed Annabeth or Drake had told them a lie that made it seem like he had changed for the worse irreversibly.

For a few months, Percy drifted, filled with sorrow, hardly able to work in his job at the water services of NYC. He nearly got fired three times and he would have, if not for some close saves using the Mist. He found a job as a babysitter and it brought him back to life temporarily, energised by the children's enthusiasm and innocence. However, he knew it was only a bandaid fix to the gaping wound in his heart. One day, a hellhound came and attacked his charges. Luckily, Percy was close enough to defeat the hellhound with minimal injuries to the child. Despite that, once the mortal parents found out that their _baby boy_ was injured under Percy's care, they immediately fired him. Percy was about to quit anyway. Whoever he got close to was hurt. That child deserved a safe, happy life. He would not jeopardise it.

Then he had found Brian and Rebecca. Two parkour experts who loved their profession. He had been a quick learner and soon went on regular runs with them, reaching their level and even above. They had revived his happy self. Well, maybe not them; it was their sport that did that, but they did teach him how to do parkour and Percy was forever grateful for their kindness. It was his first lucky break in a long time.

He was broken out of his reverie by a dark suited man tapping his shoulder. Jumping forward and then spinning while pulling out Riptide. It never hurt to play safe, and if it was a mortal, he could just wipe their mind with the Mist.

"Put away the sword Perseus, I have a proposition for you," the man said in a deep voice.

"What is your name and how do I know I can trust you?," Percy said.

"You can't and I won't tell you my name until you hear my proposition," the man told him," now will you hear my proposition or not?"

"Alright, but the sword is not going away," Percy stated, still wary.

"Would you like to join the Army of Erebus," he asked.

"What is that?"

"The Army of Erebus is a peacekeeping force that specialises in undercover operations"

"Why me?"

"Because you are an incredibly powerful and loyal warrior and to qualify to become a member you must have experienced darkness before, which happened with Annabeth"

Percy flinched. "What's in it for me?"

"A new family, and a way to keep on helping the world albeit from the shadows."

"I accept"

Percy glimpsed a smile on the man's face. "Come hold my hand, I will teleport you there."

Percy hesitated. "What is your name, you never told me."

"Colonel Point, you better remember it because I am only going to tell you once."

Percy grasped his hand tentatively. "Nice to meet you then Colonel Point."

The world went dark.


	2. Meeting Scar

**Chapter 2**

The first thing Percy noticed was the absence of light.

'Huh', he commented, 'I suppose Erebus is the Primordial of the dark, or something like that. This whole place probably doesn't have any light.'

Click. The Colonel Point stood next to a switch. 'Don't be stupid. Let's move on.' With that, the colonel stepped into the wall next to him and disappeared. Percy looked around the now visible room, a standard four-wall white room, albeit without a door. Seeing no other option Percy walked up to the wall that the colonel had disappeared through and leaned on it. The wall felt solid… maybe he should put more weight. He threw his while weight at the wall and suddenly it was no longer solid. He landed in a heap on a black rock floor.

'Hurry up. You have to meet the other recruits,' stated Colonel Point, who was towering over Percy. He twisted about sharply and strode down the corridor.

Percy scrambled to follow him.

After following the Colonel for some time, Percy reached a door with a metal sign reading '4 Sq., 12 Pt., L Coy, AoE'. The Colonel rapped once on the door. The door opened to reveal a tall, brown haired man who immediately saluted and called out 'Colonel Point present!' The Colonel nodded to the man, said, 'At ease Corporal Newman' and stepped inside. Percy straightened himself up and followed.

The room looked quite cramped and Spartan. Eight beds were in the room, four on each side. Each bed comprised of a black metal frame, a thin mattress and a thin, neatly folded blanket. Between the beds was a gap of about 70cm and the middle corridor was 1 metre wide. The last two beds were pressed against the back wall. Between the door Percy had just walked through and the first pair of beds was a 2-metre gap. The walls and ceiling were painted a charcoal grey and the floor was jet black concrete. On the middle of each wall and on the ceiling were glowing orange orbs, showering the room with light. To Percy's left was a black door, which he assumed led to the bathroom.

Standing next to each bed, except for the front two, was a young man or woman in an 'attention' posture, with hands glued to their sides, backs straight and chins up. All of them wore uniforms patterned with varying shades of grey. In the front row of occupied beds there was a blonde woman with streaks of brown in her hair that looked around 30. Across from her was a young, muscular man with striking blue eyes. He winked at Percy. Then there was…

'Recruits, this is your new squad member,' Colonel Point boomed out, breaking Percy's observations,' He has yet to choose his name and may or may not disclose his past name. Are there any questions?'

Nobody moves.

'Well then. Corporal Newman, make sure he knows the drill. Get him a new uniform and weapon.' With that the Colonel makes an about turn and walks out.

Everyone stays in position until the Colonel's footsteps can no longer be heard. Corporal Newman shuts the door. 'At ease recruits.' The others relax.

'New recruit, now is your opportunity to pick a name for yourself. Whatever you choose will be what you are known as forever.'

Percy was shocked. Here was the perfect opportunity to leave behind the fame of being 'the Saviour of Olympus', to leave behind the painful memories of his past, of Annabeth and what could have been. Better yet, he would still be doing good for the world.

'I am Phoenix,' Percy replied. He was being reborn, remade with this opportunity.

'Excellent. Could the rest of you introduce yourselves?' Corporal Newman asked, pulling out a device and noting my selection down.

They each come forward and give me their codenames. The blonde lady is called Dark Angel. The muscular man who winked at Percy earlier introduced himself as Scar. A man with red eyes steps forward, appropriately named Crimson Snake. A brunette woman looks me up and down before saying 'Juvo'. There is a dark-skinned man called 'Strike' and a green haired man called 'Letace', but mentions to just call him Ace. Once they are done, Corporal Newman looks up.

'Move next to your beds and back to attention. Phoenix, the bed to your right is yours,' he told Percy. Percy hastily made his way to the bed and emulated the others.

'Welcome to the Army of Erebus. As all of you know, I am Corporal Newman. For those who are unfamiliar with how the Army of Erebus operates, you are all privates, the lowest rank of the Army of Erebus. There are 8 ranks that you can obtain in this army, though it is likely most of you will never move past the first 4. Starting from lowest to highest there are: privates, you, then corporals, me, then sergeants, sergeant majors, lieutenants, colonels, Colonel Point, then generals and finally the General of the Army.

There are also two other positions – Supreme Commander and Champion of the Army. The Supreme Commander has, is and will always be Erebus, primordial of darkness, our patron and founder. The Champion of the Army is an unfilled position that belongs to whoever is the current Champion of Erebus. That being will answer only to Erebus and will be second in command.

You may be wondering how these ranks apply to what your role will be in the army. Privates are part of an 8-man squadron, which is led by a corporal. Each platoon is made up of 10 squads and is led by a sergeant and sergeant major. Sergeants are in charge of discipline and inspections. They are the ones who enforce the rules. Sergeant majors are in charge of organisation – when each squad does what training program, when they get to eat, things like that. A company is made up of 20 platoons and is commanded by a lieutenant and a colonel. Lieutenants help sergeants and sergeant majors do their jobs and colonels report what happens in their companies to the generals. The Army of Erebus is comprised of 20 companies and headed by 4 generals and the General of the Army. The generals are the General of the Army's advisors.

At full manpower, we should have around 30,000 soldiers. However, due to a recent war with the Gruent empire, we only number around 20,000 with 12 full strength companies and 1 depleted one. That depleted company is the L company, which you are part of.

You may have noticed on the door it reads '4 Sq., 12 Pt., L Coy, AoE'. This means that we are 4 Squadron of 12 Platoon of L Company, Army of Erebus. So if someone asks you who you are, not what your name is you will reply, Private X of 4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Coy and Army of Erebus if they are from a different army. Any questions?'

Scar asked,' What do you mean by different armies?'

Corporal Newman said,' Well, Erebus is not the only primordial with an army, in fact all of them, including Chaos him or herself, has an army. Once every 10 years, all those with a rank of lieutenant or higher go to an elite training camp where they are taught by every primordial for a month. Any other questions?'

Everyone shook their head.

Corporal Newman continued,' Well then, you guys have to be at the blessing ceremony in an hour, where you will be blessed by Erebus and gain partial immortality Phoenix, if you push the wall just above your bed, a draw will open with your uniform. Go through the black door to change. The rest of you stay and chat. I'm going to report to the sergeant.'

Phoenix (Percy) POV

With that Corporal Newman left through the main, grey door. Scar walks over to me; my bed is next to his.

'Cool isn't it?' he asked.

'Yeah it's amazing a fresh start,' I reply.

'It's kind of what I needed,' he admits with a faraway look in his eyes.

'Really?' I ask.

'Well my old life was really terrible. I was an orphan, always picked on by society. I grew up always believing that I was weak. Then one day I found this girl. She was amazing, supporting me giving me hope that I was not weak, that I was strong. Then she cheated on me and my world fell apart. My dad, Defor, God of Air in my homeworld Fount, basically disowned me saying I was not enough of a man to be his son. It took me a few years to even talk to anyone. Luckily I found an elderly couple who took care of me and helped me believe in myself again,' he looked up at me, smiling bitterly,' But you wouldn't know how I felt and… it really doesn't matter anymore – I mean I'm a new person now.'

I place my hand on his shoulder and bring him down to sit on my bed. 'Well,' I being,' My life hasn't been so great either. I was going to keep it quiet but since you trusted me with yours, I'll tell you mine. My life was pretty good when I was young – I had a great mom who took care of me. My father Poseidon, God of the Seas on Earth, was proud of me; in fact I had saved the whole council of gods making them respect me. I had a girlfriend. Then I went on a quest to prove myself to my girlfriend's mother. When I returned, everything had changed. There was a new son of Poseidon in town. He had taken all my fame and accomplishments as him and everyone believed him. That I was not so sad about – I knew what I had done and that was enough for me. However, my girlfriend cheated on him – while I was completing some of the hardest tasks known to the gods for her hand in marriage. Drake, the other son of Poseidon, lied to my mom so that she turned against me. When I prayed to my father, there was no reply. I was abandoned.'

By now Scar was holding my shoulder. 'What was your girlfriend's name?' he asked.

'Annabeth,' I replied,' Who was yours?'

'Becky,' he answered. 'If we ever meet either of them, we'll make sure they know dumping us was their worst decision ever.'

'We'll show them' I promise.

'We will, but not yet. First you gotta change!' Scar exclaims.


	3. Blessings and a new Sword

**Chapter 3**

Corporal Newman had returned. The recruits had lined up in one file starting with Phoenix then Scar, Dark Angel, Crimson Snake, Juvo, Strike then Letace. Corporal Newman looked over them. He commented,' Phoenix, next time polish your shoes so that they are shinier, Scar no smirking, Angel and Snake keep up the good work, Juvo, here's a rubber band, hair should be kept in a ponytail if it is that long. Your getting the hang of this Ace. Remember to stay silent and keep in time. Let's go before we're late.'

Phoenix followed Corporal Newman out the door with the rest of 4 Squadron in tow. They made their way through a labyrinth of corridors. Throughout their journey, Phoenix saw many different rooms and areas. He saw a massive classic arena with squadron practising fighting techniques or having friendly duels, there were water arenas where soldiers learnt how to board ships and fight at sea, there was a mess hall with 10 tables, one for every squadron – there were so many rooms he wanted to enter and experience. They also passed some other soldiers. Some were marching in squadrons, others looked like they were just returning from a gym and some walked alone, grasping official looking documents. After a well decorated blonde female soldier walked past, Corporal Newman whispered, 'You just saw General Storm! Generals are hardly ever seen. You guys are really lucky.'

Eventually we walked into a corridor framed by huge, yet elegant jet-black columns with a gold decorative trim at the top and bottom. To either side there was a courtyard, which housed a stone circle surrounding an opaque, seemingly bottomless pool. At the end of the corridor was a massive majestic pair of velvet red double doors, guarded by a lieutenant in formal gear with white gloves, epaulets and a red sash. 'Halt,' he calls out,' You are?'

'4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company!' replies Corporal Newman,' Here for the blessing ceremony.'

'You are expected. Erebus is within,' the lieutenant turns about and suddenly the shadows from all around the corridor are drawn into a pair of giant hands that pushed the door open effortlessly.

Scar and Phoenix had to consciously stop themselves from gaping at the enormous display of power; now that they were opened, it seemed like the doors were made of marble. The others, who had heard tales of the soldiers of Erebus' strength were not as surprised. Corporal Newman turned to face 4 squadron.

'When Erebus appears, bow immediately on your knee. He will ask you to repeat a pledge and you will receive a badge in return,' here Newman brought out a badge from underneath his uniform. It had a black ball underneath two upside-down 'v' shaped stripes on a gold background,' This signifies that you belong to Erebus' army and your rank. Your badge will only have one stripe. Then he will bless you. This is not connected to your pledge so that even if you break the terms of the pledge your powers will remain. This is so that some spy operatives can go undercover and work against Erebus. It cannot be taken away, but the his power can be bound.'

A loud gong sound is heard from within the vast cavern the doors lead to. Newman shuts up and strides in.

The cavern was cool, and dark. It was also eerily quiet. Sound did not echo inside like one would expect. Phoenix could see the shadowy outline of a huge altar in front of him, which Corporal Newman made his way to. There was a row of stone slabs in front of the altar, which the recruits stood behind. Suddenly the coolness became coldness and even the shadows that danced around the room were no longer visible.

'Welcome,' a deep booming voice rung out across the cavern. Phoenix dropped to his knees on the ice-cold slab.

'You have been chosen to join the Army of ME! The Army of Erebus! Today, you will be officially inducted. Repeat after me:

 **I pledge myself to Lord Erebus, Primordial of Darkness and offer myself into his eternal service.**

 **I pledge to willingly and faithfully serve him and never to work against him.**

 **I pledge to shed my old life and begin anew**

 **I pledge to join the Army of Erebus** '

Phoenix faithfully repeated the pledge. As he finished the final words, he felt darkness swirl around him, now invigorating him rather than chilling him.

'I now bless you all with my powers, in accordance with the powers you currently hold,' Erebus continued.

Suddenly, the world around Phoenix seemed bright as day. He could see the altar of Erebus kneeling before a faceless being, his fellow recruits beside him, his new badge on the stone slab and… Erebus. Around 10 metres tall, Erebus made an imposing figure with long, untamed black hair, bronzed skin and classical Greek-style armour made out of a mysterious black metal. As if he could sense Phoenix's gaze, his eyes, the pupils as dark as the void, snapped to meet Phoenix's. Although scared, Phoenix held Erebus' scrutinising gaze. After a while Erebus nodded and continued on.

'Well done. You have all achieved the first step to becoming a great member of this army and servant of the universe. Farewell.'

With that, Erebus disappeared.

 **Phoenix POV**

I lay in my bed feeling drained, examining my new sword after a day of shocks. I thought back to meeting Colonel Point and the offer he had made. It seems so long ago, now that I have taken on the blessing of Erebus. The blessing changed me. I'm not sure but I feel like a different person now. More mature, colder, darker. Definitely more powerful. When Erebus said he would bless us according to the powers we already had, I thought that I would be on the weaker side of the spectrum, based on what the lieutenant did, effortlessly. I'm sure even Hercules (as much as a jerk he is he's still a God of Strength) would have struggled greatly with it.

After the blessing ceremony, Corporal Newman took us for a power test. The score was out of 1000 with 1000 being Chaos' power and 1 being an average human's power. The thing is, the amount of power between each level increases as the power level go up. This means that a score of 800 and 801 (Erebus' power level) are not even close. Although, to compared to a human, they are both massively stronger. I scored 676 and Scar scored 672. The scores were supposed to be confidential but, after sharing our experiences, Scar and I are as close as brothers. My tester, Corporal Hunter of 8 Squadron, 6 Platoon, D Company, confided that the General of the Army's score was only 646 when he first received his blessing. However, since the general worked so hard, he managed to move up to a 712. This made me determined to work hard –according to Corporal Hunter, I should be able to make it to 700 in a few decades.

On a funnier note, Letace, who turns out to be quite the arrogant bastard (who knows maybe he is one. Well, technically I am too) came out boasting about his 432 score. While not to be sneezed at (Zeus is approximated to be, at his prime, around 398), the fact that he was boasting about a score more than 200 points below Scar and I's was just hilariously funny. To be fair, there have only been 4 scorers over 600 since the General of the Army, 6 millennia ago. However, Scar and I are the first to score over 650 millennia.

After the testing, Corporal Newman gave us fancy watches let us explore the Erebus compound, with the only condition being that we had to be at the mess hall by 6pm. He mentioned that our watches could also be holographic maps and they would lead us back if we were lost. Just as I was about to leave, he grabbed my shoulder and said, 'Off to the armoury with you.'

He instructed me on how to request directions for a room and then sent me to the armoury saying 'you need a new weapon'. Obviously I protested – 'Riptide is fine' but it was no use. I trod along with a slouched back until a sergeant caught me and warned 'If you don't fix up your act soon, I'll have you put on a charge! No slouching, move along.' I walked briskly along after that.

I knocked loudly on the armoury door when I reached it. A short muscular man with a handlebar moustache answered with 'What do you want?'

'I need a new weapon,' I replied.

'Hmm… show me your old one.' I uncapped Riptide.

He threw it into a fire pit behind him. Riptide, my beloved weapon, melted before my eyes.

'Hey! That sword served me well for many years! Why did you destroy it?' I was almost crying.

'Because it was s***.' Came the curt reply.

'What do you mean – it was high quality, made with the power of one of my now-gone friends!' I exclaimed, thinking of Zoë.

'My condolences but, now that power will be returned to your friend as it has been released from the sword. Anyway, do you know what it melted in?'

I look at the fire. It does not look like usual fire – it is rimmed with black and has a blue base.

'That is dark fire, the weakest form of fire any Erebus soldier can control and conjure – do you want a pile of celestial bronze goo next time you fight?'

I shake my head, relieved that Zoë's power has been returned.

'Now we have to forge you a new sword,' the blacksmith said.

'Who are you?' he asked.

'Private Phoenix of 4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company,' I reply.

His eyes light up and he runs behind a shelf full of black coloured metal. He handed me a block of silvery black metal.

'This is Chaotic Hellite. The strongest piece of metal we have gotten in eight hundred years,' he explains,' You are going to forge your sword out of it.'

I was shocked. Why did I deserve the best metal they had?

He must have seen my confusion because he said,' My corporal is Corporal Hunter. He reported you as the strongest soldier in millennia. You will put this metal to its best use.'

He explains the process of making the sword – putting me in a trance so that my body will be able to take over and create the best sword for me, moulding it in hellfire, one of the fiercest fires in Erebus' control and finally empowering it. The last step was a secret one, according to him. The idea was to pour as much power as possible into the sword while it was still being moulded and created. This would give it extra strength, power and even special abilities. He did not tell everyone as Erebus had made this step only available to those with a 600 power level or above. The blacksmith, Private Flame, said I could choose how much power I would put into the sword. I, of course, chose to put all of it in, as it would eventually replenish. This power, along with the metal itself, resulted in a nigh-indestructible, ultra-powerful sword. It had a few special skills due to the empowerment – making the user invisible, the owner undetectable, giving the user increased strength and reflexes, making it easier to summon shadows and even slow time for a short while. He asked me if I had a name for it – I said no, but I would think about it. One thing was for sure. This is my new baby.

 **Hi guys! Please review, it makes my day. Also give me some potential names for this new, amazing sword Percy's (Phoenix) has got. Tell me if you want to see a lot of the Army of Erebus or to get him to the Army of Chaos quicktime. A little teaser - the Army of Chaos is where he will meet his love!**


	4. Training

**Chapter 4**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson and I'm not sure why anyone would think so...**

 **Phoenix POV:**

Flicker – my sword's new name. I asked Scar just before lights out at 9:30pm. He just said,' It controls shadows right? So a flicker will all your enemy should notice before they die.'

I agreed that the name fit and apparently so did the sword – when I named it, a black aura erupted from Flicker, covering the whole room for a split second before suddenly receding. The rest of 4 Squadron were very confused and I hastily explained that my new Erebus powers were not fully under control yet as I didn't want to reveal how powerful my new sword was.

Then Corporal Newman walked in from the bathroom.

'What's going on?' he queries.

Letace replies,' Idiot Phoenix over here lost control over his powers and caused a blackout.'

Newman sighed,' Don't worry, that's normal. Tomorrow you all will begin a course that helps you control your powers. Now it's nearly lights out. Strike – your turn.'

In the morning, we headed down to the mess hall at 6:30am. Usually I would be very groggy and irritable in the gloominess of the morning, but now the darkness invigorated me. No more grumpy morning Perc- I mean Phoenix, I reminded myself. Sometimes my new identity, despite being happily accepted by me, still caught me off guard. In fact, sometimes I believed that this was a dream, until Scar slaps me on the back and asks me a question about my life. Scar and I have become really firm friends since that initial conversation. It felt good to have someone to finally open up to. Even with Rebecca and Brian, I couldn't bear to tell them all about my past. But I know Scar would not break my trust, simply because he knows the pain of what I have experienced.

The mess hall is quite empty at this hour. 4 Squadron sits at the far left, on the furthest table from the door. There is another squadron sitting at one of the middle tables. They mutter derogatory messages as we stride past: 'Weakling newbies', 'Gonna die in their first raid' along with others.

There are 5 men and 3 women. The men are all muscled and grizzled, with tough squinty black eyes. Their facial expression constantly switches between a sneer and a frown as they inspect us, making me feel as if I'm being ripped apart and my bloody remains are being thrown callously between their meaty hands. The women sit tall and proud, not joining in the men's conversation but controlling its direction with carefully injected looks and raised eyebrows. Our squadron realised that the rest of the army thinks we have never seen war, never felt the fear of fighting an impossibly strong enemy, and never experienced the loss of a loved one. And for some of our squadron that is true – Crimson Snake and Juvo have revealed that they have recently graduated from military university-equivalents in their home worlds. Scar, who fought in a military campaign in his father's name, and I felt offended as did Letace and Dark Angel, judging by their dark looks.

On the other side of the mess hall, a colonel enters. Corporal Newman showed us the slight differences in uniform between each rank, unnoticeable to those without Erebus' blessing. The colonel carried a huge stack of paperwork, which he dumped on the table before stretching and sitting down.

'And that,' Corporal Newman comments,' is why I never want to become a sergeant major or colonel – too much work.'

I smile and nod in acknowledgement. As we sit down bowls and plates appear, depending on your preference – somehow the magic of the place can sense what you want and will give it to you – as long as it is within reason and healthy; no triple decker pizzas for me. 'No fat soldiers' is the motto of the mess hall I suppose. I am given blue waffles with blueberries and strawberries and a glass of orange juice to go with it. The other recruits look at me curiously.

'It's some food from my home planet,' I explain.

They accept this explanation and move back to their own foods, all of which is pretty curious and disgusting looking truth be told. Scar is eating a soft green slime coupled with red sticks that vaguely resemble bread sticks. According to him, they are a classic dish in Fount. He offers me some, but I decline. I've only just gotten used to the idea of new, inhabited planets – alien (literally) food is too much.

It turns out that almost all inhabited planets in the universe have regular contact between each other. Earth, being the only inhabited planet in the Milky Way is very isolated and hardly has contact with people from other worlds. Spacecraft from other planets arrive roughly every decade to check if Earth's resources are worth billions of kilometres it takes to reach from the nearest inhabited planet Yoonos.

After breakfast, Corporal Newman led us to a huge bubble shaped room with a deep blue wall.

'Welcome to Power Training Room 14,' he said,' this is where you will be learning some of the basic skills and powers you have gained from Erebus' blessing. Tomorrow, you will be separated into groups based upon your power level to continue training. I will hand you a card that has the name of the room to which you are to go to continue training your powers at the end of the day. Any questions?'

'Yes sir,' Juvo speaks up.

'Yes Private Juvo,' replied Corporal Newman.

'Why do we have to be split up based on our powers?' she asked.

'Because certain power levels cannot train certain powers. For example, all of you can conjure dark fire as your power level is over 150 and you have an affinity to darkness powers thanks to Erebus. However, some of you, I will not reveal who, cannot perform a technique such as Shadow Hands, performed by the lieutenant yesterday, as you are under a 350 power level,' explained Corporal Newman.

Juvo and Strike's shoulders slumped.

'Ha ha – Juvo and Strike are the weaklings,' jeered Letace.

'Quiet Private Letace!' snapped Corporal Newman,' I'll have you know that you are not even nearly the most powerful member of this group.'

'But I got nearly 450,' Letace whined,' My tester said that was a very strong result – in the top 10 he has seen.'

'Well he obviously hadn't seen the rest of 4 squadron,' Newman finished the conversation strongly.

I subtly nudged Scar.

'Today I will be teaching you 2 basic techniques – dark fire and shadow shielding. I don't expect any of you to be able to do these skills let alone use them proficiently. What I do expect is that you remember how to perform these skills and practise them in your own time. You can do them in a room like this one,' Corporal Newman lectured.

'Dark fire is a form of magical fire. While requiring little power, it is one of the most useful flames you will find. It will melt any common metal – such as iron and steel – and some magical ones such and Star Steel and Celestial Bronze. Other metals, such as Dark Iron, it will not affect. This is not a weakness, rather a strength, as it means that we can coat our blades in dark fire once you have enough skill. This intimidates many enemies and makes even shallow cuts dangerous. Another common use is to create a wall of dark fire. This will usually incinerate any shrapnel an opponent sends at you although it limits your vision.

Dark fire has the same shape as a normal flame, but is rimmed with black and has a vivid blue core. To conjure it, you have to imagine and concentrate on an image of dark fire. Your first time may take up to a few hours of meditation to form but, as you become more skilled, you will be able to conjure complex shapes in an instance.'

Corporal Newman opened a clenched fist. Inside was a familiar looking flame – as he had described.

'This will be your example – imagine a similar flame in your hand. It will not harm you or anyone you wish not to be harmed by it. Find a spot to sit and try and form a flame,' he instructed.

Scar and I picked a spot near the entrance and watched the flame in Corporal Newman's hand.

'So we're just supposed to think about it and something will happen?' Scar asked.

'That's about it,' I answered. I was pretty shaky on the theory but I supposed it would be akin to me summoning water.

We sat down and adopted a meditative posture copying Dark Angel. I closed my eyes and imagined the flame.

30 minutes later, there was a round of gasps. I opened my eyes to see what was going on. In front of me, Dark Angel was holding a ball of dark fire.

'Very well done,' congratulated Corporal Newman,' You were just fifteen seconds out of the record time it took someone to form dark fire. You can pass it around if you like.'

Dark Angel nodded and handed the ball to me. It felt wonderfully cold yet burning hot. I imagined it changing shapes and it did easily – a dolphin, a fish, a sword…

'I see Private Phoenix has discovered that it is far easier to shape dark fire than to conjure it,' Corporal Newman commented.

I nodded and handed the dark fire to Scar. I was more determined than ever to create the dark fire.

Another 3 hours have passed. I look up and see Scar coaxed out a massive flame from a spark he had created earlier. It seems he too has accomplished the task. Only Strike, Juvo and I have yet to create a spark.

I have tried imagining dark fire for this whole time but my ADHD seems to not let me concentrate on creating a flame. It just won't come.

'Alright, we've spent enough time on dark fire,' announced Corporal Newman,' let's move onto shadow shields.'

I'm disappointed that I did not create dark fire. I vow to myself to practise it and perfect it.

'Shadow shields are pretty self-explanatory – they are shields made out of shadow. They can stop various things depending on how much power you put into them. They are made from surrounding shadows. To make them, imagine pulling the shadows and create a shield with them. Since this is an easier skill than dark fire, you will only get 2 hours to practise. At the end of the 2 hours, we will test the strength of your shield,' Corporal Newman said.

I return to my spot next to Scar. He pats me on the back. 'Too bad you couldn't create dark fire,' he told me.

'Yeah,' I replied,' but don't worry, I'll practise. I'll have it down by tomorrow. Now let's work on shadow shields. Hopefully I can redeem myself.'

I imagine the shadows coming towards me to form a shield, blocking everything else out of my mind. Nothing happens although I am tensing up wishing, imagining, believing that something is going to happen. Corporal Newman walks over to me.

'You're too tense. You need to relax and let the power flow through you,' he advises me.

This breaks my concentration. 'Pardon sir?' I ask.

'Relax and feel your power,' he repeated before walking away to help Juvo.

'Just like how my water powers work,' I mutter. It hits me – I have been spending too much effort on imagining stuff happening rather than connecting with my power and using that to make it happen. I shut my eyes and my consciousness sinks deep into my power. Next to the familiar feeling of the ocean, there is now a feeling of darkness. I latch onto that feeling and use it when imagining the shadow shield forming. My eyes open – all around me is darkness. Did something go wrong? I ask myself. Vaguely, I hear shouting and sense something hitting my shadow shield. I release my powers. Light returns.

4 Squadron is standing around me except for Scar who is facedown on the floor. I turn to Corporal Newman.

'What happened?' I ask,' And why is Scar on the floor?'

'Well, you suddenly was swallowed in a gigantic bubble of shadow, drawing all the shadows in the room. Scar got worried and was about to body slam into it just before it disappeared and his momentum tripped him over. Do you know what happened?' Corporal Newman asked.

'Well, I was just imagining a shadow shield, I didn't expect it to cover my own body!' I exclaim.

'You did that?' Corporal Newman asked,' because if you did, then you have just created the strongest first attempt shadow shield in record time as well.'

'Thanks. Your tip about connecting to your powers really helped,' I thanked him.

'Really?' Corporal Newman asked,' Maybe you should try dark fire again.'

I try creating dark fire, as if I would create an orb of water, only using my darkness powers rather than my water powers. A huge flame erupted from my palm causing all my squadron members to fall on their backsides and scramble hastily away. As a joke, I turned the fire into a life-sized lion that roared at them. None of them had seen a lion before and many of them shrieked at the sight of the unfamiliar beast apart from Corporal Newman and a few others who knew it would not harm anyone. Corporal Newman made a down motion with his hands and I immediately extinguished the dark fire.

'Calm down, calm down, there was no real danger – Private Phoenix is our friend,' Corporal Newman told everyone.

They slowly returned.

'My god Ace!' laughed Scar,' Is that a stain I see on your pants?'

We all looked and indeed there was a growing darker-than-usual patch around a certain area.

Corporal Newman sighed,' Latace go get changed and come back here immediately. The rest of you continue trying the shadow shield. As Phoenix said, connect with your power. Private Phoenix, continue practising dark fire and shadow shields. I have to report to a meeting with the sergeant major.'

The two hours have gone by. Everyone is able to create a shadow shield; even the returned Latace who sends me dirty looks throughout. I am now able to create dark fire and shadow shields instantaneously and easily control them. Now is the time to test the shields. Corporal Newman has returned and led us to a room that looked similar to a firing range.

'The order for testing will be alphabetical,' Newman announced.

'You will stand at the edge of the range and projectiles will be shot at your shadow shield from this machine,' he nodded towards a gun,' However long you last will be your score. There will be an announcement on the parade ground at 8:00 after dinner where you will be told what this score is used for. All you need to know is the higher you score, the more beneficial it will be. Let's begin with Crimson Snake.'

Crimson Snake wordlessly walked to the end of the range and pulled up his shadow shield. As soon as Corporal Newman saw he was ready, he called out,' Your time starts in 3, 2, 1!'

Black baseball-sized objects shoot out of the machine at an insane rate, faster than any machine gun I have seen. After the first 10 seconds the shield wavers but solidifies and actually expanded to cover a much larger area. However, this does not last a suddenly the shield dissipates and Crimson Snake is knocked to the floor by one. The machine stops. '17.587 seconds' is the time.

Dark Angel is next. She looks more confident. A wide black shield appears and the projectiles start coming. At around 10 seconds, her shield wavers as well. I notice that both their shields cover a lot bigger area then they should, wasting a lot of energy to maintain. A smaller shield would do, or even one that appeared as needed. A plan formed in my mind. Due to Erebus' blessing, I could easily see through shadow, but not solid shadow. By keeping the shadows non-solid, I could see the incoming projectiles but still have the shadows close enough to easily react. During this time, Dark Angel has been knocked out at 20.235 seconds and Juvo is in and struggling.

I tell Scar my idea. He replies,' Maybe you can do that – I don't have enough control or reflexes to do that yet. But the idea about a smaller shield has merit – see how all the projectiles hit within a 50cm radius of each other but Juvo is blocking up to a 4m radius – that's a lot of wasted energy. I think I'll try that.'

Strike and Scar move in to drag off Letace's unconscious body. I walk down to the end and form a shadow mist around my body. I will concentrate it once I see where the projectiles are aimed at.

'Do you need more time to get ready because you don't have a solid shield yet?' asked Corporal Newman.

'I'm ready,' I reply, hoping my plan will work.

Crimson Snake and Dark Angel exchange disbelieving looks. Strike snickers. I'll look like a total idiot if my plan doesn't pay off.

'Well then, your time starts in 3, 2, 1!' exclaimed Corporal Newman.

The first ball was aimed at my chest. I immediately formed a baseball-sized shield within the wall for it. Then I created a shield for the next ball that was following less than a quarter of a second behind it and aimed at my head. I kept this up for the first ten balls before I realised my first shield was still up. I quickly released it.

As I continued, I realised that the balls were starting to take different amounts of power to stop despite all being the same velocity. I delved into my darkness powers and found that I could sense the amount of power needed to stop each ball. I enter a trance – look, react, release power, repeat. Vaguely, I see the astounded expressions my squadron members are wearing – they cannot see how a mist shield is stopping the balls. At some point a sergeant stepped into the room, presumably to check that everything is going according to plan but he too is standing agape. Suddenly the balls stop coming. I wait for a few seconds to see if it is a trick, and then release the mist.

'What happened?' I ask. This seems to break Corporal Newman from his own trance.

'The machine ran out of projectiles,' he replied,' There should be more in 10 seconds, if you would like to keep going.'

'No.'

Everyone turns to the sergeant.

'What is this private's time?' the sergeant inquired.

'18 minutes 26 and counting sir,' said Corporal Newman, checking his watch.

'Stop the timer. Who is he?' the sergeant asked.

'Private Phoenix of 4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company sir,' replied Corporal Newman.

'Private Phoenix, come with me. The rest of you, continue the testing,' instructed the sergeant.

I followed the sergeant outside the range. He turns and holds out a hand to me.

'Sergeant Gold of 12 Platoon L Company,' he introduced himself. I shook his hand.

'Phoenix, did you know the record for the projectile test before you took it was just over 10 minutes? Of course sergeant majors and higher do not take the test, but you broke the record, made 4 millennia ago by a lieutenant who is now a general on your first attempt, no less. You have skill and potential as well as a good brain to go with it,' Gold complimented.

'Thank you Sergeant,' I looked down. Nobody had ever complimented me on my intelligence – it had always been Annabeth.

'I'm going to take you to see my superior Sergeant Major Dragon. I understand that you were to receive a mentor tomorrow, correct?'

I nod in acknowledgement.

'We usually only provide corporals and sergeants as trainers, sometimes sergeant majors for especially powerful recruits. However, with your skill, even if you were a moderate power level, you deserve to have a sergeant major as your mentor at the very least, perhaps even a lieutenant if you are lucky. What is your power level by the way?' Sergeant Gold asked.

'676, sir,' I replied.

'I'm sorry, did you say 476?' he asked, eyes wide.

'No sir, I said – '

'576 then, that must be it,' he amended.

'Sir, my score was 676 as tested by Corporal Hunter of 8 Squadron, 6 Platoon, D Company,' I repeated, a bit annoyed by his perceived dullness.

'Oh my, we better get you off to Sergeant Major Dragon,' exclaimed Sergeant Gold in a shocked voice.

'Are you feeling alright sir?' I asked.

'Yes, yes, quite alright … 676, oh my god, 676, oh my god, 676, oh my god…' and he continued like that for the rest of the way to the Sergeant Major's office.

 **AN: As said last chapter, please review and tell me what you want to see in this story. While I do have an overall plot in my head, character suggestions will be accepted as well as other ideas you may have. SR52**


	5. Mentor

**Chapter 5**

 **Hi guys! Really sorry for not uploading this past week, I've been on holiday. Just got back and thought I would write up a chapter quickly.**

 **Percy POV:**

Sergeant Gold had stopped muttering with his head down. He now maintained perfect posture as he walked, nodding silently to people he knew. This, to me, was a signal that we were approaching Sergeant Major Dragon's office. Soon we turned into a short corridor with only one door at the end. The door was made of metal that had been coated with a thick deep purple paint and had a simple, well-polished brass plate on it reading 'Sergeant Major Dragon, 12 Platoon, L Company'. As we drew closer, I could see to the left of the door there was a small sign in charcoal grey stuck to the wall reading 'Do Not Disturb'. I only noticed it because of my inspection of the door. At the same time, Sergeant Gold sped up, seemingly eager to share my wonderful score. When we were one metre away from the door, I belatedly realised that he was not going to stop, but rather barge in.

'Serge-' I called out, trying to draw his attention to the 'Do Not Disturb' sign, but it was too late. Sergeant Gold had pushed the door open, grabbed my right arm, and hauled me in.

We were met with a plain, square, four-wall room with a moderately sized wooden desk towards the back, a high-backed leather chair behind it, a sparsely filled bookshelf to the right and a filling cabinet in the right corner furthest away from the door. To the left was a low, circular table with a glass top so the timber floor beneath could be seen. On it was a number of files spread haphazardly around it, one reading 'Initiative Lad-' with the rest being covered under another file. Sitting at opposite ends of the table were two simple wooden chairs with two people sitting in them and examining the files. Now, the two people looked at Sergeant Gold and I, allowing me to recognise them as a Sergeant Major and a Colonel, both the their dark khaki uniforms. The Sergeant Major, Sergeant Major Dragon I remembered, was a red-haired female that looked around 26, with a thin scar running across her left cheek. The Colonel was a severe older man, perhaps 40 in appearance, though I was sure he was much older, with greying hair and piercing blue eyes that were reminiscent of Jason's. I shoved away that memory.

'Why didn't you at least knock?' asked Sergeant Major Dragon,' I did put up a Do Not Disturb sign, didn't I?'

Sergeant Gold blinked. 'There was?'

'Yes, to the left of the door, where I usually put it. Tell me what you were going to, then leave,' Sergeant Major Dragon replied.

'Well, this young lad here,' began Sergeant Gold, flushed and embarrassed,' Broke the record for the projectile test. By over 10 minutes at 18 minutes and 26 seconds, though he could have gotten more had the machine not run out of projectiles.'

The Colonel leaned forward, interested. 'Who are you?' he asked me.

'Private Phoenix of 4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company, sir!' I reply instantly, used to the drill now.

'A Private,' the Colonel mused,' I thought my eyes must have been mistaken. How long have you been in the Army of Erebus for?'

'This is my 2nd day, sir,' I reply. I usually disliked authority – could you blame me; the police constantly hound me for things that the monsters did and Zeus is simply to arrogant to even consider respecting – but the Colonel made me wary.

The Colonel chuckled,' General Storm won't be happy about this – usurped by a newbie! You must be part of the batch that was blessed yesterday – my Lieutenant Cleave told me.'

Dragon spoke up. 'I believe this means you will receive the Crescent Moon Medallion for Skill.'

The Colonel pursed his lips,' this could be a good example for the initiative. To show them how it works.'

Dragon shook her head,' that wouldn't be good for Private Phoenix. It would bring unwanted attention onto him. The example has to be a veteran.'

'Can you find one?' the Colonel challenged.

'Yes – there's one in my 9th squadron – Corporal Forest,' she replied.

They noticed my confused expression.

'You'll find out tonight,' Sergeant Major Dragon told me.

'Is there anything else you wanted?' she asked Sergeant Gold.

He cleared his throat,' I was thinking, in light of his skills and his power level, his mentor should be changed from whatever it would be.'

'Power level?' questioned the Colonel.

'Private Phoenix says he is a 676, sir,' replied Sergeant Gold smartly.

The Colonel looked down, forehead crinkled, deep in thought. There was a knock on the door. Sergeant Major Dragon sighed loudly, exasperated,' Does anyone understand the meaning of Do Not Disturb anymore?'

She waved her hands and a shadow came and pulled the door open, revealing a Sergeant Major and very tired and sweaty Scar. Upon seeing the Sergeant Major her eyes widened in recognition – 'Sergeant Major Orvus, welcome,' she greeted, smiling.

'Good afternoon Dragon, Gold,' said the Sergeant Major returning the smile,' and good morning to you Colonel Fotun.'

The Colonel nodded in acknowledgement.

'So what did you come for?' asked Sergeant Major Dragon.

'This young man, Private Scar of 4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company, next to me lasted 12 minutes and 43 seconds in the projectile test - first time too – which I believe is a new record and makes him eligible for the Crescent Moon medallion. Just thought I would let you know, as training awards and some other minor accolades are our responsibility,' Sergeant Major Orvus informed us.

Both Sergeant Major Dragon and Colonel Fotun let out a small bark of laughter in response to the news.

'Oh, I'm entirely serious,' said Orvus, looking slightly offended.

'No, it's just that Private Phoenix,' Colonel Fotun gestured towards me,' just broke that record with a time of 18 minutes and 26 seconds.'

Orvus, who had turned to look at me, let in jaw drop in shock before quickly recovering.

'Wow,' he whispered in amazement.

'This means that Private Scar will only receive the Quarter Moon medallion for Skill, rather than the Crescent one,' continued Colonel Fotun.

'Well… it seems my message has been noted, may I be dismissed?' asked Sergeant Major Orvus, looking towards Colonel Fotun.

'Sergeant Major Orvus, dismissed,' replied Colonel Fotun.

The Orvus saluted and made a sharp about turn to leave. When Scar attempted to copy the Sergeant Major, Colonel Fotun held up a hand, indicating that Scar should stop.

'Don't leave. Private Scar, what is your power level?' the Colonel inquired.

'672, sir,' replied Scar.

'Well then, two promising recruits… I think I'll take you on,' said Colonel Fotun nonchalantly.

Scar and I gaped at the proclamation. Sergeant Gold squawked 'What!' and Sergeant Major Dragon exclaimed 'Pardon!'.

'Sergeant Gold, watch your tongue,' rebuked the Colonel sharply.

'Excuse me sir,' asked Sergeant Major Dragon,' how will you manage two trainees while fulfilling your duties?'

'This is an excellent ex-, I mean, reason for me to pass on the paperwork to Lieutenant Cleave, at least for a few decades,' grinned Colonel Fotun, no longer wearing his serious façade.

'Thank you, sir,' I say, still shocked.

'I look forward to training you and Scar,' replied Colonel Fotun,' Private Phoenix and Private Scar dismissed. I believe your dinnertime is at 5pm, in fifteen minutes. Better get there quickly.'

Scar and I scamper out. We turn to each other and raise our eyebrows.


	6. Initiative Ladder

**Chapter 6:**

 **Phoenix POV:**

We arrive at the mess hall 2 minutes early. Luckily the squadron at the table before us had moved out so we didn't have to wait for them to leave. Scar and I sat down heavily at the far end of the table. I was soon served grilled chicken with peas and corn while Scar received some lettuce-like pale green vegetable wrapped around a few meatballs dotted with purple. He ate it like a wrap.

2 minutes later, precisely, 4 Squadron walked in. When they reached the table with Corporal Newman at the front, Scar and I stood up and saluted. Corporal Newman waved us down 'At ease'.

'So what happened with you two?' he inquired as soon as the entire squadron was seated.

'We were taken to Sergeant Major Dragon's office,' Scar replied,' we're to receive some Moon medallions for skill.'

Corporal Newman lowered his voice. 'You don't want to be advertising that fact around your squadron members and even some of the veterans – they may become jealous. But well done – that is a huge honour for a newly inducted soldier. Are you receiving it in public or private.'

'I think private,' I replied.

'It's probably for the best. Minor awards usually aren't handed out publicly anyways – only the major ones,' said Corporal Newman,' Anything else you wanted to tell me or should I give you your mentors?'

'Yes, about our mentors,' Scar lowered his voice even further,' Colonel Fotun has decided to take both of us on.'

Corporal Newman raised an eyebrow. 'Lucky. Oh, I didn't get a chance to tell you but we have an evening parade tonight – the whole army. Something about demonstrations and news… either way, you have to be in full parade dress, which should appear in the box above your bed,' he looked down at our almost finished plates,' Since you two are almost down, you can head back first and change first. It will lead to less arguments and more time for the others.'

Scar and I nod, wanting the extra time. We scarfed down the remainder of our meals then cleared off.

The parade uniforms were simple, but military and elegant. There was a black cap with a silver rim. There was a simple grey business shirt and a silver tie that came with a black jacket. On the jacket's shoulders there were silver epaulets with one black stripe. On the left collar there was a white badge with a series of black triangles forever decreasing in size until all you could see was a black dot, the symbol of Erebus. On the right collar there were two crossed swords in silver, indicating that I was a combat soldier, not a specialist like a blacksmith or healer. There were two pockets, one above each breast. Above the right pocket it read 'IV VIII L' in silver showing my squadron, platoon and company. Above the left pocket were two strips of darker patches than the rest of the uniform. I assumed they were for medals and ribbons – perhaps the top one was for major awards and the lower was for minor ones. All the buttons were made of silver with Erebus' symbol on them. The cuffs were silver and extending out of them, where the Lover's Knot usually would be, was another symbol of three over lapping circles, which was similar to Chaos' own symbol and symbolised strength and bravery throughout the galaxy. The jacket material felt silky, but since the Army of Erebus seemed very fixated on practicality, I assumed they were much stronger than they seemed.

There were two silver belts – one with a buckle for a sword sheath and one without. They both came with an inky black buckle, probably made of Dark Steel. I put the one with the sword sheath buckle on. For pants, it was just long black pants with a silver stripe running down the side. There were also black socks that came with a pair of shiny black dress shoes.

As I walked out of the toilet/dressing room, I saw Scar, who was already changed, stand up to salute Corporal Newman as he entered the room. I hurried to salute as well. He looked us over.

'At ease, Privates. Private Phoenix, put on a sword, otherwise wear the other belt. Private Scar, your tie needs some adjustment – Phoenix, you can help him,' Corporal Newman critiqued us.

I went over to fix Scar's tie. By the time I was finished, Letace, being the arrogant a****** had taken the first slot for changing. Corporal Newman was also gone, probably to an officers' changeroom. I went to return the unworn belt back to the box. When I opened it, there was now a shiny black sheath with intricate silver designs wreathing the top. I took it out, then retrieved Flicker from under my bed. Dark Angel watched me as I unsheathed it from its plain leather casing. She whistled.

'That is one fine sword, may I touch it?' she asked.

'Sure,' I replied, handing it over.

She turned it around in her fingers and made a few practise swings.

'It's one of the best swords I've ever held, which should be impressive considering I am a descendant of one of the greatest sword-smithing families in the universe – do you know who made this piece of art?' she asked.

'I did,' I replied.

'Amazing' I blushed at the praise.

She handed it back. 'Does it have any special powers?' she asked.

'Yes, it can enhance my shadow powers and make the user invisible,' I admit, not wanting to give away that it could slow time or make me undetectable to all those under Primordial status and even then, they would have a hard time sensing me. I slid it into a sheath, which felt a bit loose at first, until it remoulded itself to fit properly. I clipped it onto my belt.

Dark Angel's eyes widened. 'Those are some of the most impressive powers I have ever heard. You could become one of the universe's best sword-smiths.'

I shrug my shoulders. 'I'm not really into it,' I reply. Dark Angel looked a bit disappointed.

Letace stepped out of the changing room sneering. 'You lower beings may now squabble over who may enter next,' he announced arrogantly.

We were almost at the parade ground. Many other squadrons were also approaching the field. There were 4 minutes till parade officially begun. Officers either wandered in groups discussing files or walking in between the squadrons and randomly calling them to attention for a final check before parade inspection. One sergeant approached.

'4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company – attention!' he called out.

I snapped to attention immediately, having been warned by Corporal Newman that this was common. Unfortunately, Juvo was not as alert and lagged behind the rest of us. The Sergeant walked over to her and stared at her. After what seemed like an eternity he said,' Your belt buckle is off-centre. Be more alert next time. Squadron at ease. Carry on.'

With that he walked away. Corporal Newman looked at his watch, paled and called out,' 4 Squadron, quick march, double time.'

We arrived at the edge of the parade ground just as a man wearing a parade uniform similar to mine from a distance apart from the fact that what was silver on mine was gold on his as well as many medals and ribbons he wore about his left breast. Speaking of awards, Corporal Newman had two ribbons but had not told us what they meant yet.

Unfortunately, since we were L company, we were furthest away from our position and had to walk across half the field to a blue flag, which was absolutely massive – over 40 soccer pitches in size, though only just over half was being used – probably since there were only 12 companies left out of an original 20. We were also situated just over halfway back in the company, in 12 Platoon, sandwiched between a row of newbies like us in the front and a row of veterans whose gazes seemed to penetrate us from behind. I stood next to Corporal Newman, who was on the right. Soon the same man who called us on parade bellowed,' Attention!'

Then came 'Dress right, Dress!' We all stuck out our left arms, looked to the man on the right and shuffled to make space.

'Ready, front!' We snapped our gaze back at the man, who I could now see was holding a Blackwood baton, embossed with gold.

'Roll call and uniform inspection!' Then came multiple overlapping calls. 'A Company attention!' 'C Company attention!' as well as others. Luckily, I had heard Colonel Futon's voice and was able to catch his 'L Company attention!'

'L Company at ease!' We opened our legs and held our hands behind our backs.

'Sergeant majors, call the roles. Sergeants conduct a uniform inspection,' bellowed Colonel Futon.

Sergeant Major Dragon called out '12 Platoon attention!' followed by '12 Platoon at ease!' She then took out a device that looked like a clipboard but the screen resembled a tablet. As she called the role, Sergeant Gold strolled between the ranks with a baton similar to the one the General at the front carried, carefully inspecting everyone's dress. When Dragon called out 'Phoenix' I replied swiftly with 'Yes, ma'am'. Once she was done and Gold was happy with everyone's dress, Dragon called us back to attention. We had to wait about 30 seconds for the other platoons to finish. I looked down at my watch. It had only taken my platoon 2 minutes and 36 seconds to call the role. Considering there were 80 men, that was extremely fast. Then came more calls from the front.

'Platoon report 20 Platoon!' Similar calls counted down to '1 Platoon!' Then the man on the platform in front of us yelled,' Company report A Company!' These were replied by either 'All correct, sir!' or 'No discrepancies, sir!' It seemed that everyone did turn up.

The General at the front nodded, then made an about turn, facing another general who I had not noticed in the shadows. They marched to meet each other and halted, then saluted to each other. The first General made a left turn and marched off the platform. The other General marched forward. I could now see that it was General Storm, who we had passed yesterday.

'Soldiers,' she called out,' today we will be informing you of some changes. It has come to my, and my fellow general's, attention that during the war against the Gruent empire, there were some traitors. You may have noticed missing officers today, with others filling in for them. They have all been released from our service, either by death or oath. This, of course, leaves our army with several unfilled positions. This is where Initiative Ladder comes in. For every medal, ribbon or other award you obtain, you will gain points. At the end of a three month period, your new rank will be determined by how many points you have. You will be able to see how many points you have on your watch, where you can opt to have your score shown on the noticeboard in the Nyx courtyard and on the screen above me. There are some rules: no one above the rank of lieutenant can participate. No one with a power level under 400 can participate. If you are deemed unfit for the rank due to temperament or loyalty, you will not receive the position no matter how many points you have. If you are found to be cheating the system, you will be disqualified and demoted if applicable. No awards from before today count, but awards given today do count. The list of available ranks is: 1 Colonel, 3 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeant Majors, 12 Sergeants and 42 Corporals. As an example, Corporal Forest of 9 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company, please step forward to receive the Silver Stripe for Bravery. He fought off a pack of wild Nathras to retrieve a wounded Private on a routine patrol.'

A short but heavily muscled man with white hair and a brown beard stepped out of the platoon and marched to the front where he saluted to General Storm then shook her hand and allowed her to stick a ribbon to his jacket.

'If Corporal Forest would accept the request for his score to be shown on his watch,' General Storm said, but the Corporal was already doing it, anticipating her request,' then we shall see his score.'

A screen suddenly materialized behind her head and on it, written in white, was a single white rectangle reading '1…50pts…Corporal Forest…Colonel'.

'There will be also more optional missions during this three-month period, to help soldiers gain points,' General Storm continued,' however, note that if any member of your team is seriously injured, you will not receive any points, if any member dies, then you will lose points. Do not go into dangerous situations in the hopes of a reward. That is all. Army of Erebus, dismissed!'

Mechanically, I followed the others and made a right turn and marched three steps before looking to Corporal Newman for command. '4 Squadron, head back to our room and change into your fatigues. You have free time now. Ensure you are back by 9pm and do not run. You have about two and a half hours.'

 **Hi guys, it's SR52. I just had a weird thought - are ambrosia and nectar drugs that demigods can cope with but not humans? Tell me what you think. Also, if you have a character idea, please send it to me.**


	7. Training with Fotun (Day 1)

**Chapter 7:**

 **Phoenix POV:**

Today our watches, through an electric shock, woke Scar and I up at 4 am. Underneath a top bar on the watch display that read '100pts (what the Crescent Moon medallion for Skill was worth) CONFIDENTIAL (I had opted not to show my name)' there was a e-mail like message that read:

 **From:** Colonel Futon

 **To:** Private Phoenix; Private Scar

 **Subject:** Training

Gentlemen,

Report to the mess hall at 0415. Dress in fatigues. Today is strength and endurance testing followed by power training.

V/R

Colonel Futon

Scar looked down at his own watch, noticed the time and swore. 'Better get moving,' he said.

As we reached the mess hall at 0414, I profusely thanked my enhanced eyesight. We would have hit the walls or gotten lost without it many times on the way to the mess hall. I looked over Scar and straightened his uniform whilst he did the same for mine. We entered.

Colonel Futon was sitting on the table closest to the table eating a bowl of cereal and reading a newspaper. We walked over to him and saluted.

'Private Scar and Private Phoenix reporting for training, sir!' we said.

'At ease gentleman,' he replied,' eat up. We will be leaving in 15 minutes.'

We scrambled to our seats. The magic of this room must have somehow known we were going to have to use a lot of energy today because it gave me a plateful of scrambled eggs and bacon. I ate it quickly before drinking a glass of some green shake that tasted surprisingly good.

At 4:25, Lieutenant Cleave walked in, cheery and smiling. He greeted Colonel Futon whilst Scar and I stood at attention.

'Up early again sir?' he asked,' and who are these two Privates?'

'Oh you know me,' chuckled Colonel Futon,' and these two are my new trainees.'

'Trainees?' questioned Lieutenant Cleave, slightly disbelieving.

'Yes, that reminds me,' Colonel Futon heaved a positive mountain of files onto the table from the floor beside him,' these are all yours. Trainees, let's move out.'

Cleave's jaw dropped, eyes bulged – the true incarnation of shock. In sync with the Colonel, we turned and left the mess hall after him. Once outside, Futon broke down.

'Di-d y-you s-see his f-face!' he exclaimed.

We were at the parade ground. On the screen it read:

'1…100pts…Anonymous…Colonel'

'2…80pts… Anonymous…Lieutenant'

'3…50pts…Corporal Forest…Lieutenant'

I winked at Scar. Colonel Futon noticed the wink and saw where I was looking.

'Ah yes, Initiative Ladder. I will be helping you two in it – getting the best missions and so forth. While I cannot directly give you awards, I will guide you and help you achieve them. Now, onto testing,' announced Colonel Futon.

He led us through a series of stretches then told us to run around the entire field as many times as we could. The field was very large, easily a 3km perimeter. I was able to do the first five laps easily, legacy of a life spent running from monsters. By the 10th lap I was wearing out. By the 13th lap, Scar dropped out and I was going at half my initial speed. At the end of the 15th lap I had to stop. Colonel Futon gave me a bottle of water and a square of ambrosia.

'Well done,' he praised,' 45km in two and a quarter hours is very good for someone who has never been in formal army training before.'

Next he gave us 50 kg weights to carry as long as we could. Since I had already used a lot of energy in the running, I was tiring since the second minute whilst Scar looked fine. However, something that I had learnt over my years as a demigod was that when you felt drained, you probably were only halfway through the tank. Nevertheless, I was tired and collapsed at 15 minutes 23 seconds. Colonel Futon gave me more water and ambrosia.

It was now just past 7am and soldiers were walking by, looking curiously at the now struggling Scar, then in shock at the leader board. Scar eventually dropped the weight at a very impressive 21 minutes 16 seconds. He grinned at me – 'Muscular strength is very important on Fount.'

Colonel Futon walked us to an arena that had sand as the floor.

'What is the most important asset to be coupled with your powers?' he asked us.

'Power?' I replied, unsure of what it was.

'Skill?' replied Scar.

'It is neither power nor skill,' replied Colonel Futon,' the most important thing is imagination. Why is this? Because, no matter how powerful or skilled you are, there is always a counter for every move, every attack. How you can win is by being able to counter an opponent's every move and being able to throw moves at them that they cannot counter. Many believe, including some of my colleagues, that the solution for stopping an attack from being countered is more power. That is not always true – for example, it may require more power to get an attack through than the damage the attack actually causes, a Pyrrhic victory, or you may face an enemy who is more powerful than you. There is always someone stronger, faster, better than you. Remember that. Those who know his weaknesses and can play on them can beat even Chaos himself. Therefore, whilst knowing all the known skills and techniques and their counters is important, it is just as, if not more, important that you are able to create your own counters and attacks. The idea is to create moves, chains that cannot be deciphered or understood in the time it takes to complete them.

Millions of years ago, the only use of shadow powers was for projectiles and shields until a female assassin tried and discovered that travel through shadows was possible. During the time that no one knew how the ability worked or how to stop it, the assassin managed to kill enemies far more powerful than her, even in straight combat. That is the kind of skill I wish to, and I wish for you to, create.

However, in order to create your own skills you must first understand your powers and how they work. You must learn the skills that others have created and master them; create your own variants first. While I teach you these skills always keep in mind that the end goal is for you to create your own one-day.

Today, I am going to teach you shadow melding. It is a skill with many branches including shadow travel, involving the user and passengers to become one with the shadows. To do so…'

Colonel Futon continued on his speech, with me listening carefully. Reach for the darkness within yourself, join it and command it to do what was needed. He told us to shadow meld and run from one side of the arena to the other. There was an unbroken line of shadow along the right side from the stands. Down the middle was a row of chairs giving a broken shadow but apparently they were unrelated. I managed to join the shadow on my first try. It felt similar to when I had previously shadow travelled with Nico, but at the same time more comfortable and welcome, due to my blessing from Erebus. However, I felt a bit lost and exited, stumbling out of the shadow in the same place.

'Well done,' applauded Futon,' now why did you come out?'

'I felt lost and did not know which way to go,' I answered, feeling ashamed.

He smiled,' that's okay – you just have to command the shadows to guide you where you want to go and then trust their directions. If you do not, then trust any other senses you may have – you have water powers correct?' I nod.

'Then you can feel the water around you to tell where you are and how far you have gone,' lectured Colonel Futon.

I had never tried that before, but now it seemed like a fairly obvious skill. I suppose that's what happens when one only uses hurricanes and tidal waves all the time as a trump card. Colonel Futon said that his advice applies to all powers. Whilst I had never exclusively trained with my waterpowers before, my connection and understanding of water and the oceans was strong.

By lunchtime, we had covered another skill – shadow moulding, which was basically shaping opaque shadow into tangible objects. Colonel Fotun started off with weapons then onto clothes. He said as the caster becomes more skilled the created objects would be longer lasting, more elaborate and stronger. I could only create a simple grey t-shirt whilst Scar had created a jacket with the sign of Erebus emblazoned on the back. After finishing his grilled meat (I didn't know what it was) salad, Colonel announced that we had the rest of the day off as he had Colonel duties to attend to. However, he had a 'gift' for us.

'These two wristbands have magic to make your body feel as if it was 10 kg heavier. Each day, starting from today, it will gain 10 kg in weight. This will help you build up strength and endurance. Keep it on at all times – I will know if you take it off. You two have the day off, but I would like it if you continued to train,' he told us as he began to walk away.

Scar and I looked at each other in horror. The first three or four days would be okay, but then it would be hell.

Scar has decided to go to a weights training room to get used to the weights that we will soon be carrying. I opt to train my powers a bit, returning to the arena. I begin with creating a rock out of shadow and putting it through a hammer machine to test how much power it would take to break. Once it reached 40 hammer blows for a crack to appear, I focused on changing the colour. This was possible through the fact that colour was just a reflection of light and my shadow powers could determine which colours were reflected and which weren't. Then I returned to shadow travelling. I tried to build up endurance by shadow travelling multiple times. I soon hit a problem – I became very dizzy very quickly. Sitting down to think about it, I realised that, while I did imagine the location in my head, I did not get my body and senses ready to accept it. This would require me to imagine a location by sight, but by hearing, taste and smell and touch as well. However, I couldn't imagine them as quickly. I came up with another ingenious solution (my old friends would be dying of laughter right now – Percy… ingenious? What a riot) – to get my senses to record all the information about a place so that once I imagined how it looked like, my senses would automatically know what they should sense. I tried this with locations around the arena, drinking in as much as possible for a few hours. By the time I was onto my 250th location, I could record everything in less than a second and even how it would be like from another angle. This would give me incredible spatial awareness, I realised. When another soldier stepped in on the other side of the arena, I could sense the change with my senses despite me looking the other way. Now I was ready. I looked down at my watch – 4pm – only took me over 3 hours.

I sat down heavily in one of the chairs running down the arena, stared at the broken shadow they made on the floor. I wondered if I could shadow travel through each one from one side to the end extremely quickly. I tried it and it worked. Interested, I grabbed a sword from a rack in the corner, not a well balanced as mine, but good enough. Every time I popped out of a shadow, I let my arm extended and swung out. Seeing as this was still easy, I arranged 6 chairs in a tight circle and placed a dummy in the middle. As I shadow travelled between chairs, I struck at the dummy. Seeing the potential of this, I timed how many strikes I could get in 10 seconds. I counted over 50. At one hit per travel, no flit, that was sure to be a new record. This new technique would be called shadow flitting (PJ2015©)(AN: Percy is 22 in this story – he was born in 1993).

But for now, I really need to eat dinner and go to bed.

 **Hope you like the story so far. Many thanks to all those that have reviewed - your support is greatly appreciated. SR52.**


	8. Training with Fotun (Day 2)

**Chapter 8:**

 **Phoenix POV:**

I jerk awake. It's an alarm shock from my watch, at 4am this time. The message reads:

 **From:** Colonel Futon

 **To:** Private Phoenix; Private Scar

 **Subject:** Training

Gentlemen,

Eat breakfast then report to the Parade Ground at 0445. Dress in fatigues and bring all weapons.

V/R

Colonel Futon

I sat up and groaned immediately. 'Please don't tell me I ate too many tacos last night, I feel ultra fat' I pray fervently before realising that it is the Weight Band that is making me feel 20kg heavier. Despite feeling fat, my stomach wanted food and my brain, and therefore body, serve my stomach. 'Come on Scar!'

After another filling serve of bacon, eggs and the mysterious green shake, I headed off to the Parade Ground with Scar in tow. Colonel Futon was waiting, looking down at a file with a red stamp on the front. He looked up,' Early today are you?' We nod.

'Well, to start things off run 10 laps of the Parade Ground,' Futon commanded.

We obeyed. Today, by the 8th round I was beginning to get fatigued and Scar was sweating heavily evidence of the pains of having 20 extra kilos. Nevertheless, we finished without a problem and received a bottle of water, no ambrosia, for our troubles. Next came 100 push-ups and 50 chin-ups. I slightly regretted doing all my power training yesterday, as I still felt a bit drained and was struggling on my final 20 chin-ups, whilst Scar, who had practised yesterday, pushed through grimly without any real troubles. Colonel Fotun then informed us the number of push-ups and chin-ups would increase by 10 every day.

'Now follow me to the Training Chamber,' Fotun instructed.

The Training Chamber was made of two rooms – a smaller one you entered through the main door and a second, larger one accessed through a Chaotic Steel door. The first room had a huge window showing the second room and a computer that currently read 'Inactive'. The second room was perhaps 30 by 30 metres and 6 metres high. The walls were all white washed and it was bright but not blindingly. Colonel Fotun began explaining.

'The small room we are in right now is an Observing or Viewing room. You can see the events in the second room, but those in the second room cannot see you. The wall and glass between the first and second rooms are all Chaos-material of some grade for safety – we sometimes house prisoners here. However, today we are going to be using this room to test your weapon skills. You have two chances at this today. Once with just your weapon and no powers and second time with weapons and powers. Understood? This test works by sending a round of assailants at you. Each round will be different – the number of enemies increase, their durability increases, speed, strength and other factors. This computer will tell me how you are going and what round you are on. It will also allow me to stop the test once you are down. Also, for your notice, as you seem to like breaking records, the record for non-power is 653 and the record for with powers is 1389. Phoenix, you are up first. Any questions?'

'Yes,' I reply,' my sword is imbued with special powers. Am I allowed to use those?'

'Yes,' replied Fotun,' as long as the power for these abilities comes from the sword, not you. Good luck then.'

The door swung open. I unsheathed my sword but kept the scabbard attached to my belt. Since I received the upgrade to Chaotic Aluminium, it was extremely durable and useable as a shield. My fatigues were loose so that they were easy to move in but did not get in the way. They were very good fighting clothes. I stepped into the room. 10 seconds after I entered, a disembodied voice announced 'Round 1'. A being made of shadows stepped out. It had no armour or weapons. I swung my sword at it. It made an attempt to duck but was far too slow and its head was chopped off. Similar quality enemies came out of the next 20 rounds. Then at Round 22 an armoured man steps out. His armour is very weak and all it does is slow him down. For the next 77 rounds I face enemies of a similar calibre, armour slowly increasing in quality and the number of enemies changing, but never more than 10. At Round 101 emerged a man with a pickaxe but no armour. Every Round up to Round 500 was easy to defeat, apart from Round 432. There was only one man, but he was extremely fast and had only one weak spot, like the Achilles Curse.

At Round 501, there were 10 warriors armed with spears, shields and Chaos grade armour, though it did not cover their whole body, exposing their neck, thighs, elbows and armpits. However, these soldiers were organised and had a strategy, unlike the previous rounds. They quickly formed a circle around me with their rectangular Romanesque shields interlocking, allowing only a small gap for their spears. But not all of them were quick enough, evidenced by only 8 spears surrounding me. Also, they were slowly edging in, getting me in a kill-zone. If I was not wearing the weight-band, I may have risked trying to jump out, but that was not an option. If I tried to target one soldier, the ones on the other side would move in, trapping me further. There was no way out. They stabbed together.

Their spear points stabbed towards me at a ridiculously slow speed. I spun and chopped off all the spearheads, not wanting to waste this opportunity. Then I pulled the shaft of a spear from one warrior's hand into another's shield, sending them stumbling back. I ran forward and stabbed both men exposed by the gap and watched their bodies dissipate. I repeat the motion for the other warriors until all that was left was the warrior that had been knocked over. Only that he wasn't knocked over and was still leaning backwards and falling very, very slowly. I sliced his head off and looked around me. The spearheads were almost still, but slowly falling down, only halfway to the floor in the time it took me to decimate 10 soldiers. It was then I felt my sword pulsing and realised that this was part of the power of my sword. I decided to see how far I could get without using any more of my sword's powers. Gently willing the pulsing to stop, I watched as the spearheads clattered to the floor and readied myself for the next round.

I am on Round 587. A huge, hulking man faces me. He wields a massive broadsword and only has a chest plate, vambraces and shin guards as armour, which is more than I have at any rate. He looks very similar to the giant I fought last round that was strong, but slow. I suspect that he will have both strength and speed. He charges forward with a viciously fast, wild overhead swing, causing me to roll away. Even as I did so, I could be the ground beneath me rumbling in response to his massive blow. I stood up, foolishly almost losing my head to an unexpected swipe. Pretending to rise again, the hairs on my neck rose as the cool passage of air above indicated that the giant had taken a backswing, hoping to catch me by surprise. Sword extended in front of me, I dived forwards, rolling between the giant's hairy legs, slicing his thighs as I went through. Stopping in a crouch, I watched as the giant let out a huge roar, stumble forwards and fall to its knees, black blood pouring freely onto the white floor. Since its back was to me, I approached cautiously, hoping to lop of its head without the giant noticing. As I stepped within two metres of the giant, it unexpectedly threw its sword backwards, perfectly aimed at me. I was shocked that it was so accurate, despite being injured and looking the other way. Luckily, a lifetime of training and drilling manoeuvres allowed my body to divert the sword with Flicker, without my mind commanding it to do so. It must have sensed that the last-ditch effort had failed. It slumped forward, giving me an easy opportunity to cut through its thick neck.

Round 636. I now sported to long gashes along my right arm and a cut on my left leg. Neither were very serious, flesh rounds from Rounds 630-635, but they were draining me. Now came two swordsmen, whereas the last the rounds there had only been one. They circled me, one on either side. One carried a metre long with a hand-and-a-half grip whilst the other held and 80cm sword with a single-handed grip and a vambrace on the left arm. I decided to call the metre-sword enemy Joe and the other one John. I charged John, hoping to catch him unaware with a right swing but he lifted his arm and parried with the vambrace and retaliated with a low cut at my out stretched right leg. I disengaged Flicker and stepped back, avoiding John's blow. Instinctively, I stepped to the left and leant backwards, narrowly avoiding Joe's wild swing. I stepped back until I was facing Joe and John together and then loosely held my sword, ready for any attack.

Instead of attacking, they formed a position where John was crouching and Joe was standing over him, protecting him from aerial attacks. It seemed that they would not make the first move so I stepped forward to attack John. John leapt from his crouched position and straightened his body in the air like a spear. I parried his outstretched sword and kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying to the right. Before I could move in to finish him, Joe was on me. Parry, swing, dodge, jab, dodge again, and repeat. The cycle seemed endless but with a feint to the right before punching Joe in the chest, I was back on top. However, I saw John getting to his feet behind me. Knowing tired and injured as I was, I would not be able to fight off both at once, I tried something desperate. Stepping back from my deadly dance with Joe, I straightened my sword at him, forcing him to step back, before pulling the sword back and throwing it at John. Flicker struck solidly and he went back down with a thump before disappearing.

I had no time to celebrate my victory, however. Joe, who was shocked for a second that I had thrown my only weapon away, charged me. I could not run for my sword as he was blocking the way and could only dodge as he advanced, the metre long sword keeping me out of hand-to-hand combat range. I was slowly being backed into a wall. I had escape from the path Joe had chosen for me. There was one option obvious to me, a parkour student – run up the wall and flip over Joe. However, he was too fast for that to work on its own – I needed a distraction. It came to me – the classic 'spit and run'. So I did just that. I spat at his face and ran up the wall over Joe. He still made a swing at me, but I dodged that as if it was a balcony that was further out than anticipated. Retrieving my sword, I went back to face him. This time I was able to beat him without the distraction of John but it left me extremely tired. When Round 637 was announced and three warriors appeared, I knew I had to use Flicker's powers.

Using Flicker's time slowing abilities easily got me to Round 1031. At Round 1032, there was a weak group of enemies who moved at normal speed despite Flicker's powers being active, which, believe me, I checked. It seemed that they were simply so fast that Flicker only slowed them to normal pace. Nevertheless, they were very weak and easy for me to defeat. It was then that the undetectable powers of Flicker were used.

From then on, all the Rounds were easy, apart from Round 1389. For that round, a being that radiated terror and dread approached with two curved blades. It must have had some kind of magic on it's face because no matter where I moved, it always seemed to be looking at me, despite the fact I knew I was undetectable. Getting close enough to kill it was also a pain. After defeating it, I was still shaking so hard from fear that I almost let the dual hammer-wielding group of dwarf like creatures drop their hammers onto me. However, the cuts from before and even just the act of stabbing the enemies were tiring me. At Round 3282, I cancelled all Flicker's powers and had less than a second to call out 'I surrender!' before 20 fully armoured wraith-like beings (think Nazgûl) set upon me with their swords. For a few seconds, I blocked, parried and dodged as fast as my mind would let me, making sure all my movements were as economical as possible so I wouldn't get stabbed. I didn't even have time to command Flicker to turn its power on again. I managed to kill two, giving me time to yell out 'I surrender!' again. This time, just as another five were about to stab at various places in my body, they all disappeared. I slumped to the floor, exhausted. Colonel Fotun entered and dragged me back into the viewing room and onto a chair. Then he shoved a glass of nectar into my hands and told me to drink. I nodded, finished it, and fell asleep.

I woke to the sight of Scar fighting a pack of Hellhound like creatures. Scar wielded a sky blue sword that glided through the air faster than normally possible. 'Gale', I remember, was its name, a gift from Defor before Scar was disowned. Looking carefully, I could see a slight glimmer at the end of the sword, an extension made of solidified air (don't ask). The metal tip was not the tip of the sword, which extended 5cm further forward. It was a useful design feature that had tricked many of Scar's foes before.

I turned to my right and saw Colonel Fotun, who was staring at the computer, which read Round 612. I groaned, causing Fotun to look at me.

'You okay?' he asked.

'Really tired. Probably can't do another turn today… sir,' I answered.

'Yes, I probably should have considered that before letting you in there. In any case, your performance is something I will need to report,' replied Colonel Fotun,' now sit back and watch your friend.'

I saw as Scar dispatched Joe and John with a lot of effort, but nowhere near how much it took me. He tried a similar tactic to me, surprise-attacking John, but his extra sword length surprised the warrior and it was stabbed. He probably had seen me fight against Joe before and knew that Joe fell for a lot of feints. However, without the time slowing abilities of Flicker, each fight that Scar fought kept on getting harder and harder, enemies stronger, harder and faster. At round 653, the previous record, three warriors came out – I recognised them as the same ones from Round 3282. These, however, were about half the speed and Scar was able to defeat them. Scar became cocky when the last warrior was on the floor and made to perform an execution-style blow. This cost him a deep cut to his leg that bled profusely. In the next round, Scar was able to defeat a massive giant with a club, but all the dodging made his bleeding worse and he had to concede defeat. Nevertheless, he still beat the old record by one as the giant had died. Colonel Futon told me,' Get some nectar and a tourniquet from the cabinet over there' before rushing out to retrieve Scar.

I walked over to the cabinet and opened it to find neatly arranged bandages, nectar, ambrosia, water and other medical equipment. I grabbed a glass of nectar and a thick-looking bandage. Colonel Futon brought Scar in over his shoulder and placed him in a chair. I handed the nectar to Scar who took it gratefully. Colonel Futon propped Scar's legs onto the table and pushed the back of the chair down until it was flat so that Scar's leg was raised above the rest of his body. Having done it several times before for injured demigods, I wrapped the bandage tightly around the wound, despite seeing that it was already partially healed due to the nectar.

'Are you alright?' asked Futon. Scar nodded, fully conscious.

'Okay. I need to visit General Shredder to ask him about some things then go back to my Colonel duties. It's about one o'clock now and your squadron is scheduled for lunch at one-thirty. After lunch, you have the rest of the day off,' said Colonel Futon.

'Oh, and here's a note,' added Colonel Futon, scribbling something onto a piece of paper,' to excuse your damaged uniform until three o'clock. I expect you to have changed by then.'

Colonel Futon POV:

 _That was incredible!_ I think – both of my trainees broke longstanding records again. Private Phoenix's sword was a piece of work. Examining it whilst Private Phoenix was unconscious showed that it could slow time down and even make the user invisible, though I suspected it was stronger then that as some of the rounds contained enemies that hunted by smell and hearing, not sight. Powers on that level, as far as I knew, did not exist in swords, unless made by a Primordial or another entity on that level, though their swords had many more, but less varied, abilities. I supposed that Eros' power level was only 698, so Phoenix wasn't far behind. It definitely showcased Phoenix's power. Time-slowing wasn't unheard of, in fact all master sword makers had to create a time-slowing weapon as part of their training, but to do it on that level – it was incredible – bringing time to almost at a complete stop for people other than time gods and Chronos, just wow!

I strode along the Parade Ground to the Command Headquarters building, where my quarters were. I had a day office in the officer's building at the opposite end of the Parade Ground, which gave me daily exercise. I entered the cream six-storey building and took the elevator to the 5th floor. I stepped out onto a corridor lined with portraits of past generals and carpeted by a thick velvet rug. Soon, General Shredder's classic mahogany door was in front of me. I knocked twice.

'Come in,' called the General from inside. I did just that.

I saluted to General Shredder as I stepped in. 'Colonel Fotun reporting, sir!' I cried out.

'At ease,' said General Shredder. He was a young looking man with brown hair and a small triangular goatee. His eyes were blue but had shards of yellow, evidence of his Hartner heritage. Like many of his race, Shredder had huge muscles that often deceived opponents into thinking that he was very strong, but didn't possess much speed. Today, he was dressed in parade gear, but his elaborate jacket was hung over his simple wooden chair.

'Please sit Colonel,' Shredder asked me,' Would you like anything to drink?'

I shake my head.

'What are you here for today, Colonel?' he asked.

'Well,' I reply,' I would like to request a change in the criteria of the Training Chamber no power tests.'

General Shredder leaned forwards, interested. 'Yes, why?'

'Well, I think it would be easier to show you,' I inquired,' Could you open the data file for Training Chamber 27?'

He nodded, tapped a few icons on his watch and soon the file was projected onto a screen to the right of his table. Looking through, he paused when he saw Private phoenix's score.

'Round 3282… surely there was a mistake in the system,' he said.

'No, sir,' I reply,' Private Phoenix's sword, Flicker, has some very powerful abilities, which include slowing time and becoming invisible, if not undetectable. This allows him to defeat almost anything the room can throw at him. The only reason that he had to stop was because of exhaustion and blood loss from wounds he sustained from Round 633. His sword, despite it being within the boundaries of the current rules, gives him an unfair advantage.'

'So what do you propose we do about it?' asked General Shredder.

'I propose that we create two new categories – power swords and no powers. Swords with powers will be able to be used in the no powers category as long as no powers from the sword are used. If they have a latent power that cannot be turned off, so to speak, then that sword cannot be used,' I said.

'Sounds like a good idea,' said General Shredder,' As General of Training, I accept your proposal.'

'Thank you sir,' I reply, smiling.

'This, I suppose, will make Private Phoenix the new record holder for the power swords and put Private Scar at second, giving them another set of Moon medallions. I also believe that this means Private Phoenix is also the record holder for no powers as, according to the system, he fought without powers for the first 636 rounds. All previous record holders had swords with powers. Private Scar's sword is recorded to have latent air related abilities increasing speed, strength and length of his sword,' decided General Shredder,' I will award them their points and awards immediately.'

'If I may sir,' I inquire,' could you give them quietly – these two Privates are very new, less than a week. Awarding them publicly would bring jealously to them.'

'True,' mused Shredder,' I will do as you recommend. Is there anything else?'

'Yes. Despite these two being less than a week into the Army, I would like to take them on a few missions – nothing too hard. Could you sign off on that?' I request, pulling out a clipboard with a pre-printed sheet of paper.

General Shredder looked at his screen before looking back at the paper. Inspecting it carefully, he crossed out a number, replaced it then signed.

'I changed your limit of 3 star missions to 2 star. Know that I am only dosing this because of their incredible skills. Come back if you feel like they need more,' Shredder explained.

'Thank you sir,' I exclaim. This was a better outcome than I could hope for.

Phoenix POV:

Scar and I were relaxing on our beds, resting for a few minutes before going to train. I planned to keep Shadow Flitting a secret until I revealed it to Colonel Futon, so I would not show Scar yet. Suddenly both our watches beep. I have a message that reads.

 **From:** General Shredder

 **To:** Private Phoenix

 **Subject:** Awards

Private Phoenix,

I am happy to inform you that you have received two Crescent Moon medallions for Skill – one for Power Swords and one for No Powers, both from the Training Chamber test. As a result, you have been awarded the New Moon medallion for Skill. Your point score has been updated and you will find your awards in the box above your bed. You may attach them to your parade uniform. Congratulations.

V/R

Colonel Futon

'Wow!' I exclaim. Looking over at Scar, it seems he has a similar reaction. Looking at the top bar of my watch, it now reads:

 **'500pts, CONFIDENTIAL, Rank 1'**

 **There's my first 4k chapter, readers. I really appreciate all your reviews and would welcome some constructive criticism. Thank you so much for all the support.**

 **Also, I have not planned a romantic parter for Scar yet. If you would like to choose who it would be, write it in a review. The only rules are no one who has died (i.e. Zoë, Bianca e.t.c.) and no male characters.**


	9. Mission on Erta

**Chapter 9:**

 **I am a bit disappointed that no one voted for Scar's romantic partner. At the moment, anyone who reviews with a name has a good chance of getting their choice. So review!**

 **Would you guys like to see more training chapters, mission chapters or just army chapters. Let me know and I can make it happen.**

 **Phoenix POV:**

 _1 week later_

Today, choosing not to be shocked as per usual, I rose early at 3:50am. Actually, I was just excited for the mission that Colonel Futon had announced yesterday. I jumped out of bed, expecting pain from the ever-increasing weight of the weight bands. But there was none today. Perhaps they were at their limit or Colonel Futon had stopped adding just for the mission. The latter was more likely.

Shaking Scar awake, I noticed that my watch lit up, without the electric shock, but Scar jerked and was suddenly conscious, gasping in shock. It seemed that the watches could sense whether you were awake or not and would notify you in different ways depending on what state of consciousness you were in. Today I did not bother looking down as Colonel Futon had given us instructions last night and told us he would not be sending instructions through the Army's mail system.

We quickly changed, then jogged down to Shuttle Bay 12. We reached the dominating blast doors and slipped through the smaller door that was set into the larger one. Inside there were ten identical craft, shaped like an arrowhead, vaguely reminiscent of Erebus' symbol, which was painted in grey on the side. The entire craft was painted black, had I not possessed Erebus' blessing, I would not have been able to see them in this lighting and their colour being so dark. The third craft down had stairs coming down from its side, softly illuminated by orbs of pale blue light that I had seen around the Erebus complex. Colonel Futon stood next to the shuttle and waved as soon as he sensed us.

'Let's go!' he called.

We were sitting around a table in a small conference room at the back of the craft. Colonel Futon had turned on autopilot and he was giving us a mission brief.

'Our target today is to kill Mr Sadler Thompson and destroy his jungle compound on Erta. Mr Thompson is a Stardust dealer, a very strong hallucinogen drug that is lethal in moderate doses. A member of one of the local tribes came across his secret base whilst hunting and reported it to their transmitter. Also, according to a message that a radio worker overheard, Mr Thompson will be inspecting the plant today. Mr Thompson is an infamous drug dealer in his galaxy so he is probably very rich and has many guards. We will need to kill Mr Thompson before we destroy his compound to ensure his death. In the past, targets have escaped due to this. According to the same tribe that found the compound, there have been many disappearances over the last few weeks, leading us to believe that there may be prisoners. Getting them safely back will be our second priority. Scar, you will kill Mr Thompson. Here is a plan of the compound and a transcript of the overheard message. Phoenix, you will release the prisoners. Once they are all together, shadow travel them to the village we will be landing at. I will rig the compound with explosives. Are there any questions?' asked Colonel Futon.

When Scar did not reply for a while, examining his map carefully, I asked,' Did you deactivate our weight bands today? I don't feel any heavier like normal.'

Futon laughed. 'That is very good progress. It seems your body is adapting so fast that you do not even notice the extra weight anymore. Scar, how do you feel?'

Scar looked up. 'The extra weight feels less today than it did yesterday, but I do notice it,' he replied.

'You're getting there,' nodded Colonel Fotun,' You two will be wearing your weight bands for this mission, then.'

We nodded, expecting this as Colonel Futon had not let us take them off for anything else that week – which included a lot of tests. I was now at 680pts, third by about 120 pts. After this mission, I would have 50pts, it being a 2-star mission. I had also developed another skill with my waterpowers – creating shards of ice out of water vapour in the air. I could now control it so that it would surround an entire person, or just aim at their back and be shards or just hailstones. It made for a dramatic way to end a fight – 'Look behind you', they turn, then are stabbed all over. Scar and Fotun were still unaware of shadow flitting.

Looking at my watch, I saw that we still had half and hour till our destination. Kitchen is the next stop.

We have landed on Erta. The craft has landed perfectly next to some sort of campfire. Already, a large group of tanned men and women gather around our craft, probably villagers. Colonel Fotun puts down the stairs again and steps out first. 'We are the representatives of the Army of Erebus assigned to remove the drug dealer Mr Thompson from your territory. I am Colonel Fotun. May I speak to your leader?' Fotun asked.

I watched all this from the kitchen, eating freshly cooked bacon and eggs. Scar knocked, then entered.

'Are you coming down?' he asked.

'Nah,' I reply, mouth half full with bacon,' this food is too good.'

'Lazy bugger,' Scar sniffs, steals some bacon, and stalks off.

I watch as he descends the stairs to join Colonel Fotun in a conversation with a tribal leader wearing a very vivid shawl and waving his arms around like a maniac. After about five minutes, Scar manages to calm the leader down. The leader hands him a photograph. Scar and Fotun bow and retreat back to our craft.

'Where were y- ooh bacon!' The sight of the godly food broke Colonel Fotun's rant.

Once Scar and Colonel Fotun were done eating the last 26 pieces of my bacon (I'm a growing soldier. I need food), they turned to me.

'This is a picture of a spot just outside the compound,' said Futon,' It is hidden from view so no one should be there. We will shadow travel there, then split up. Is everyone equipped?'

We nodded. I imagined the picture in my mind, roughly where it was, what my senses would feel like. Then I fell backwards into a shadow.

A few seconds after I arrived, Scar and Fotun, stumbled out of the shadows, unlike me. I was prepared for the new sight so I didn't stumble. We nodded, and then split. I shadow travelled to the edge of the jungle closest to the East Wall, melding into the shadow to ensure I wouldn't be seen, though, hidden behind some trees I likely wouldn't have been spotted anyway.

A red force field appeared in front of me, pulsing slowly, as I reached the edge of the jungle. Holding up my watch, I had the watch examine the force field. Judging by the colour, movement and reaction of the force field to me touching it (nothing), it seemed as if it was a sensory field. My watch confirmed this and added that it would sense any powers being used, but not inhibit them. If I used any of my powers inside the line, it would raise the alarm. I would have to do this without powers.

Setting my combat suit to camouflage mode, I began to crawl towards the wall, about thirty metres, pausing every time a guard would walk past.

 **Scar POV:**

Gasping softly, I reach the bottom of the huge medieval wall just as a guard appears, walking lazily along the West Wall. A stupid force field prevented me from using my powers and just shadow or air travelling to this place. Instead, I had to sprint about 50m in less than 4 seconds before I came into the guard's vision. Luckily, they were too focused on the jungle to look just under their noses; else they would have seen me.

The wall is very rough, with plenty of handholds and grips that I can exploit on my way up. Because of the guards, I cannot use a harpoon or some other climbing device. Again, I curse Mr Thompson's security system. As I work my way up, two guards meet directly above me to converse.

'James,' says Guard 1,' Look smart, the boss will be coming around to inspect in 10 minutes, before he heads off to the lab to inspect their work.'

'Thanks Mark,' replies Guard 2.

It seems that Mr Thompson has changed his intended path, probably discovering that he had been overheard. Luckily, the lab was not too far off from the farm and I would easily make it in 10 minutes. The two guards move off in different directions.

I pull my head above the wall to take a look around. No one is in sight, but footsteps are audible. I duck back down. A fat guard walks past with his gun over his shoulder, totally unprepared. But I can't take him down, not with another guard due to appear five seconds after he disappears. As soon as he walks off, I leap over the parapet, onto the walkway then jump down to the ground, four stories below, landing with a tight roll. I am on a pathway next to a shed that separates the pathway from a green courtyard. Hearing voices approach, I quickly open the door to the shed and slip in. 'Beta is in,' I tell my teammates over my earpiece.

'Roger. Theta at the wall,' replied Phoenix.

'Roger. Alpha at West Wall,' replied Colonel Fotun. He must have rigged the South Wall already.

I open the door, letting a sliver of light into the shed. Outside, it appears the group of scientists have left and now the way is clear. The perimeter of the courtyard is lined with marble columns beyond which are many entrances to different areas of the compound. Above the entrance directly in front of my line of sight is marked 'Dining rooms'. To the right is one called 'Development' – the entrance leading to the Lab. I run over to it and then push myself into the shadows of a doorway, careful not to allow myself to slip into them, setting off the alarms.

A status update comes from Colonel Fotun. 'Alpha at East Wall,' comes through my earpiece.

'Roger. Theta in prison block,' says Phoenix softly. He must be right under someone's noses, like me.

'Roger,' I reply, in an even quieter tone,' Beta approaching position.'

Now that the voices have faded, I silently run down the corridor, taking the second left, then the first right, then the third right into a short corridor. At the end, there is a rippling blue door of Pontean Steel. Three voices approached – scientists returning to the lab. I prepared myself, remembering the pressure points I had been taught during my childhood.

They turned the corner. As soon as they were out of sight from the main corridor, I attacked, jabbing them quickly in the back with equal force, locking their muscles where they were and ensuring they would all regain movement at the same time. The beauty of the pressure point was that they would not remember being hit. However, it only gave thirty seconds. I grabbed a key-card from one scientist's belt and swiped it against a sensor next to the door. The door opened. I ran back to return the key-card to its owner, then slipped inside, shutting the door behind me. As I passed through, the red force field once again appeared, but this time, I was walking out of its perimeter. This was probably intentional so that scientists could test what different powers did to their experiments.

There were two rows of benches with multiple test tubes. There were blocks of Stardust resin in glass jars that were lit up by different colours, though they probably indicated different variables. The scientist's voices from outside restarted. I dived into a shadow as they entered.

Then came – 'Alpha is compromised. Switch channels. Alph-'. Immediately, I tapped my watch and opened up a new line between Phoenix and I, whilst removing myself from the old communication line so that they could not trace me. Phoenix's voice came through.

'Beta, do we continue or abort?' I sighed. 'Continue. Alpha said he was compromised, not the mission. After we complete our objectives, we will find Alpha.'

 **Phoenix POV:**

Colonel Futon was captured. That was a bad sign but Scar, the new leader of our mission instructed me to go ahead so I will. Looking down at the two guards I had decapitated, I saw one of them had a set of keys. Grabbing them, I walked further into the prison block, making sure that the front door was locked. It would buy me a few seconds before someone realised that they had been breached. As I walked in, I saw an emergency escape plan on one of the walls. It had a map of the prison block. There was nothing else on this floor, just stairs down to the lower levels. On the first level down was the armoury for the guards and a room for confiscated items. There were also four holding cells. Beneath that were 20 communal cells. Below that were 5 isolation cells. I looked down at the keys I had snatched – they were labelled 'C 1' for communal cell 1 and so on. There were also a set that read 'I 1' for isolation cell 1 and 'H 1' for holding cell 1. On the lowest level was a single, maximum-security cell. There was no key for that. I would have to break in, likely setting off the alarms. Leaping down the stairs, I arrived at the first level. There were four guards sitting at a table but I took them by surprise and Flicker finished them off. I didn't know whether using Flicker's powers would alert the security, but I was not going to risk it. Dashing to the holding cells, I soon realised that there was no one there so I headed down to the second floor. These cells were full. I opened the one closest to the stairway and entered. The cell had 5 bunk beds on either side and the prisoners were sitting on their beds or lounging around. They stood up as they saw me.

'I'm from the Army of Erebus. I'm here to free you,' I announced. They looked shocked for a moment.

'Don't cheer yet,' I warned,' we want to get out of here unnoticed and loud noises will not help.'

They nodded, seeming to understand. I picked a woman with chestnut hair that I found trustworthy on first glance. 'I need you to free all your fellows on this level and on the level below. Can you do that?' I asked.

She nodded mutely. I turned to the rest of them. 'I want some of you to help her and make sure the other prisoners know the importance of staying quiet. We will all meet on the first floor.'

I turned and left them. Racing down the stairs, I soon reached the bottom level. There was a metal grate in front of me that seemed like Nyxian metal on first glance. It was not match for Chaotic Hellite, though, and Flicker cut through it easily. Next was a keypad that was connected to a locked door. If I just cut through the door, the alarms would sound. My watch began to find the correct code for the keypad. It would take a while.

 **Scar POV:**

More talking approaches the door. It is Mr Thompson and his entourage. I am going to take a shot from the shadows and then take out everyone else in the room. Mr Thompson entered with six bulky bodyguards, each holding either a sword or a gun. Mr Thompson started talking.

'It is wonderful,' he began,' that we are making so much progress developing new variants of Stardust. All that progress cannot be destroyed. Especially not by two little Erebus soldiers thinking they can play in the big leagues.'

Mr Thompson, a tall pale man in a pinstriped suit, turned towards me, revealing his icy blue eyes. I curse. 'Beta compromised.'

'You thought you were so smart, trying to take me out without using your powers so I wouldn't know. But I had a leak in the village,' Mr Thompson continued.

'Theta not compromised. Target had a spy,' I say, before taking out my earpiece and crushing it.

I withdraw my gun and aim at Mr Thompson. 'Too late for that,' he mocks. A heavy hand tightens a wet cloth to my face. I struggle against my assailant, but four more people come help him and hold me down. My lungs are bursting for air and I have to brea-

 **Phoenix POV:**

It seems like both my teammates are out. I will have to complete this mission on my own. My watch has found the code for the key-pad – 8315492 – and the door clicks open. Inside is a white room, like the Testing Chamber, and the only occupant is a beautiful, lithe woman with a full head of long brown hair. She is chained to the wall, off the floor, by her wrists and ankles. I approach her carefully, not sure why she would be in maximum security. With two quick, hard slices, her ankles come free. Her eyes open suddenly, revealing violet orbs.

'Are you here to free me?' she asked weakly.

'Yes,' I reply simply.

'Did Chautle send you?' she asked.

'No, I come from the Army of Erebus,' I tell her before slicing off the wrist chains.

She falls to the ground, too weak to stand up properly. Sheathing Flicker, I pick her up, carrying her to the top level. When I reach the first floor, I find about 150 people looking at me. I place the maximum-security prisoner on a chair previously occupied by one of the guards, then move over to a control panel. There is an option that reads 'Prison force field'. The switch is currently on 'Active'. To change it to 'Disabled', I will need to turn a key. The woman I had given the keys to now return them to me, but none of them match the one on the control panel. Then I noticed that one of the guards had a different set of keys. I grab the whole set and try each one. The third key is a fit. As I turned the key, the air turned red for a second before rippling and disappearing. I instructed all the prisoners to hold hands before sending them back to the village. There was one prisoner left behind by her fellows – the maximum security one who seemed to have fallen asleep. I shook her awake.

'I will take you back to the village now,' I told her gently.

'No,' she said,' To Chaelus.'

I was about to reply with 'where's that' but she touched my forehead and suddenly I knew.

'If you wish,' I tell her,' you will be safe there?'

She nodded. I shadow travel her to that location before leaving the prison block. It was time to save my teammates.

 **Colonel Futon POV:**

Scar and I are opposite each other, chained by our ankles and wrists to the wall. So far I have had no sign of Phoenix being caught so he must be out there somewhere. Mr Thompson may not even know about Phoenix, which could explain why Scar has not mentioned him. We are struggling against the chains when Mr Thompson enters, followed by two bodyguards and a woman in a grey suit.

'The Army of Erebus will pay a pretty price for two of their prized soldiers, especially for a colonel,' Mr Thompson gloated.

Scar struggles even harder at this. I kept my cool, following the interrogation techniques taught by the Army of Erebus.

'A colonel?' I ask,' really?'

'Yes, Colonel Fotun,' replied Mr Thompson, shocking me,' I believe that is what you introduced yourself as.'

'Sir,' began the woman in the suit, now holding a tablet,' Private Scar is on the verge of breaking his left ankle binding.'

Mr Thompson laughed. 'I have discovered the Army of Erebus' secret to make their soldier so strong,' he announced,' to test this, I gave each of you one weaker binding, made of Pontean steel that Erebus soldiers have been rumoured to break.'

I frowned. As far as I knew, the fact that Erebus blessed all his soldiers, like every other Primordial did, was common knowledge.

'Take off their bands,' Mr Thompson ordered,' let's see if you can still break them now.'

I almost laughed but schooled my face to reflect shock. Scar quickly caught on, eyes widening before thrashing harder than ever. The bodyguards rushed to unclip off Scar's weight band causing Scar to slump, looking defeated. The bodyguards did the same to me. I slumped, but felt very strong suddenly. My weight bands have been set at 500kg for the last century. Scar's band would be around 100kg today. I held up three fingers so that only Scar could see and counted down to zero. On zero, we both strained, easily breaking both the strong and weak bindings. We immediately took out the two guards then pounced on the woman. But by then Mr Thompson had fled.

I grabbed my weight band and put it on, indicating that Scar should do the same. We then run out into the corridor only to find Phoenix standing with Flicker stabbed straight through Mr Thompson.

'He just ran out into my sword!' exclaimed Phoenix.

Scar turned to me. 'Did you manage to place enough charges?' he asks me.

'No,' I reply,' Do you remember that technique I taught you two days ago – shadow implode?'

They both nod, starting to grin. Shadow implode would cause a person or object to be sucked into their own shadow so that the shadow acted as a sort of black hole only disappearing once the object casting the shadow was gone. We shadow travelled outside, and looked at the complex.

'On thr-' I began, but Phoenix had already crushed the complex, without breaking a sweat.

'Show-off,' muttered Scar.

 **Phoenix POV:**

All of a sudden, there were a number of pops around us. Fotun, Scar and I jumped into a circle, facing the new major god-level beings that had just appeared. There were three men and two women in full, vibrant battle armour surrounding us.

'Who are you?' questioned Colonel Fotun.

'Peace,' replied a man who seemed to be in charge,' we are gods, part of the council on Erta. Who might you be?'

'Soldiers from the Army of Erebus,' replied Colonel Fotun.

'It is he!' exclaimed one of the women, pointing at me.

'What do you mean?' I replied.

'You are the one Iyaer described – the man with the emerald eyes,' she replied.

'Then these are truly the soldiers we seek,' mused the god in charge.

'Our king, Chautle wishes to speak with you on Chaelus,' informed the god,' if you would let us take you there…'

'Give us your word that we will not be harmed, then we shall go,' demanded Scar, still suspicious of gods after what Defor had done to him.

'I, Ratil, God of the Jungles and Rivers, swear upon my status as a council member that no harm shall be done to these three soldiers unless they should intentionally harm one of our own,' swore the god.

Scar seemed happy with this and now Colonel Fotun replied,' You may take us.'

We all sheathed our weapons and allowed ourselves to be flashed to Chaelus.

Chaelus, despite seeming to be the equivalent of Olympus, had none of the flashy grandeur the gods of Olympus seemed to enjoy. Instead, it was like a well-kept garden, with pathways and ponds, fountains and flowers and benches and birds. We were walked to a large clearing where five more gods were seated on simple wood chairs in a semicircular pattern – three women and two more men.

'Ah! Our guests are here,' announced the man seated at the head chair.

We bowed to him on our knees, low as we had been taught in Godly Etiquette. As Privates of a Primordial's army, major gods outranked Scar and I. As a Colonel of a Primordial's army, Futon was on the same tier as major gods, but should bow to the Chautle, as it was his home.

'Rise, fellows,' commanded Chautle,' may I ask you your names?'. Once I was standing again, I saw that the woman I had saved, Iyaer, was sitting directly to the right of Chautle, but in clean white linen robes, not the dirty, half-torn ones I had found her in.

'I am Colonel Fotun and these are my teammates Private Scar and Private Phoenix,' answered Fotun, gesturing at us.

'I would like to thank you both as Chautle, God of Protection and Healing, King of Chaelus, for the return of one of our own and as husband of Iyaer, for the return of my wife. In gratitude of this deed, I will grant you each a wish,' said Chautle.

'I would wish for a blessing from a god or goddess for each of my teammates,' announced Scar.

'Very well,' replied Chautle,' each of you pick a god or goddess. There is: Daryl, Goddess of Craft and Creativity, Esthar, Goddess of the Earth and Sea, Rathir, Goddess of Parenthood and Love, Feal, Goddess of Life and Death, Iyaer, Goddess of Light and Purity, myself, Ratil, God of Jungles and Rivers, Teyal, God of Time and Weapons, Cratus, God of Celestial Bodies and Yander, God of Rain and Natural Disasters.'

'I will pick Lady Esthar,' decided Scar.

'Lord Teyal, I choose your blessing,' I say, as I bow to him.

'Lady Feal, I would be greatly honoured to receive you blessing,' announced Colonel Fotun.

As one, they raised their hands and pronounced,' we find you worthy of our blessing. We grant you our blessings.'

'In your pockets, you will find a note that describes what the blessing will give you,' said Chautle,' Private Phoenix, what do you wish for.'

'I wish for, if I may be so bold, for complete invulnerability for my teammates and I,' I request, hoping I wouldn't be smitten.

Chautle examined Scar and Colonel Fotun quickly before staring at me for a long time.

'I can make you completely invulnerable,' he said slowly,' but not your teammates. I can give you such invulnerability, as it seems you have had some form of invulnerability before, though it drew on both your strength and life force. This means the foundations; the proverbial basement and ground floor, have been built. You would not have to suffer as much pain to attain complete invulnerability. If I give complete invulnerability to your friends, they would die from pain. I will give them the level you had before – strong enough for most blows but can be overcome with enough force or power, though my invulnerability will not have the disadvantages, just initial pain. Do your friends accept this gift – it will be excruciatingly painful,' Chautle warned.

Scar and Colonel Fotun both nodded. It seemed that they agreed with 'short term pain for long term gain'.

Chautle held out his hands and concentrated. Suddenly, it felt as if a thousand scalpels had been stabbed into my skin and were rotating slowly, tearing apart the muscle underneath, my eyes felt as if needles had stabbed them. Everything was in sharp, clear pain, with some power preventing me from the soft comfort of unconsciousness. My only rational thought was 'don't scream, don't scream'. I fell to my knees, vaguely recognising the pain that came with falling, but finding it so inferior to the rest. Suddenly, it was over. The dull throb of my knees remained but the rest of it was gone.

Chautle stepped into my view and hauled me up. I saw and heard Scar and Colonel Fotun writhing on the ground screaming, but no sound came out. 'We put up a sound barrier,' explained Chautle,' your complete invulnerability is a lot better than your old one. It not only protects your outer layer, but also your internal organs. Neither you nor your friends will have a weak spot like you previously had. Nothing short of Chaos or 4 Primordial-level beings should be able to break through this.'

'Thank you,' I manage.

After a minute or two, Scar and Colonel Fotun are released from the pain. Their invulnerability is actually much stronger than the Styx's, protecting up to Primordial level beings or seven Major-god level beings. They looked battered, but extremely grateful.

'The final wish,' announced Chautle.

'I wish for true immortality for my comrades and I,' announced Colonel Fotun.

'Normally, I would not, but you already possess partial immortality so I will grant your wish. Chaelusians, if you please?' Chautle agreed.

The council members all raised their palms towards us and shot beams of light at us. It was rejuvenating.

'Thank you immensely,' we bowed to Chautle.

'Farewell, good soldiers,' replied Chautle.

As we walked out of the courtyard, we bowed to each god or goddess we passed, thanking him or her for his or her generous gifts.

As we walked into our craft, Scar and my watches both beeped at the same time. The message read: '2-star mission accomplished. 50pts reward.'

'Nice topper,' commented Scar.

 **Hi guys, SR52 here! Hope you like this new chapter. As I said above, I would really love it if you reviewed, it makes my day. Speaking of days, I have decided to move away from daily uploads to a longer upload every 2-3 days. Let me know if you like this change or not. This is also my first 5k chapter. Woo!**


	10. Reveals

**Chapter 10:**

 **I've received one vote for Scar's partner. Voting is open, so please do so through PMs or reviews.**

 **OC - 1**

 **Phoenix POV:**

I am shaken awake by a pair of strong hands. Instinctively, I kick out, but one of my assailant's hands catches it.

'Calm down,' the person says. I realise it was Scar.

'Sorry,' I mumble,' caught me by surprise. What are you doing up so early?'

'It's 4:06 am,' he replied.

'What?' I reply drowsily,' but we haven't been zapped yet.'

'I think that the invulnerability makes you immune to electricity, though I am not,' Scar replied,' either way, you have to be at the mess hall in less than ten minutes.'

That does the trick. I am out of bed, changed and ready to go in less than a minute. Scar is waiting just outside the door. We sprint towards the mess hall.

Colonel Futon is waiting for us at his usual table. Today, he was sitting with Lieutenant Cleave, Colonel Point and a general. He seemed to be telling them a story.

'And then Mr Thompson tells them to take off our bands – our weight bands – if only he knew!' Colonel Futon chortled, his audience laughing along.

'So we rip off the chains and kill his two goons. Next thing you know, he's disappeared – ah, welcome Scar, Phoenix,' Colonel Futon notices us. We salute and the general asks us to sit.

'Then we round the corner and poor Mr Thompson has run himself into Private Phoenix's sword. I don't know who was more surprised, Phoenix or Tommy!' exclaimed Futon.

The general nods in understanding. 'That explains your report – running away is not the most common method of death.'

'Well here comes the good bit. We shadow travel out, giving up hiding in the shadows and I decide we are going to implode the place. On the count of three I said, but before I could even finish that the whole place was gone – Phoenix had done it himself! That's how the mission was finished,' completed Colonel Futon.

I blushed in embarrassment. Lieutenant Cleave noticed and commented,' Don't be ashamed, that was a very impressive feat considering that the whole complex was what – four kilometres square.'

Colonel Point and the General nod in agreement. The general turns to Colonel Point and said,' That was a good choice you made, going to Earth to pick up this one.'

Scar and I were halfway through our breakfasts now, getting used to eating fast. The officers continued to converse about their past day, referring to past events that neither Scar nor I knew of, so we stayed quiet. Two minutes later we were done and Colonel Futon announced,' I have to take these two chaps to train now. Goodbye.'

We were in an arena, having completed our daily run and exercises. Colonel Futon turned to us. 'It's been just over a week since I have taken you on. I want you to show me what you have learnt about your powers. Scar will go first.'

Scar stepped into the middle of the arena. He drew shadows from around him, cocooning him. Colonel Futon sent a few shadowy projectiles at it to test its strength. The shadow body shield dissipated, and when it was all gone, Scar was not there – he was at the far end of the arena, having shadow travelled there. He dived into a shadow and ran towards us very quickly, using the shadows to mask his presence so that even for those with a shadow blessing would likely not notice him unless they had been trained. Scar reappeared behind us. As we turned, he created and used a shadow whip; complete with a golden tip and elaborate handle designs, to grab a chair from across the arena. When it was in front of him, he let it sit before raising his arms and making the chair implode. Scar straightened, then bowed to us.

'Impressive,' evaluated Colonel Futon,' your shield and summoned objects were very good. Shadow travelling and running was textbook. However, your shadow imploding was clumsily performed. You should not need your hands anymore, just thoughts. Overall your performance was good, but there are things that you can work on. Phoenix, your turn.'

Starting off the same as Scar, I cocooned myself in shadows and felt Colonel Futon test them. Unlike Scar, I created a second version of myself made of shadows on the other end of the arena and as I let the shadow cocoon dissipate, I joined the shadows and hid inside them. It seemed my trick had worked as both Scar and Colonel Futon were looking at my doppelganger, not at me. Now came the tricky part. I had to push my power through the doppelganger to make it seem like it was the real me. If I, for example, simply created a table in front of the doppelganger, Colonel Futon and Scar would be able to sense that the power did not come from the doppelganger and would know that it was not I. That was one of the main disadvantages of doppelgangers until I discovered how to push my power through the doppelganger. I created a hell inferno dragon using this technique.

Whilst the dragon was covering the doppelganger, I had it create another doppelganger – this time a little less accurate so it was an obvious fake, then had the original shadow travel behind Scar and Colonel Futon. Once the dragon had faded, they saw the fake, then turned around to face the original. It straightened, and then bowed as Scar had done. I stepped out of the shadows and took the second doppelganger's place. Colonel Futon began his evaluation.

'Your shadow shield was very strong – there is no doubt that you should hold to the projectile test record. There is nothing wrong with your shadow travelling – it is quick and accurate as always. The hell inferno you summoned was very powerful, but the dragon was ill formed (This was because I had less control when pushing my power through an object). Your doppelganger,' Colonel Futon gestured but did not look,' was obviously a fake. All your skills use enough power and are accurate, but they need refinement.'

I decided to reveal the trick, letting the doppelganger dissipate and crying out,' Over here!'

Scar and Futon spun around. 'Private Phoenix – did you just shadow travel out on me?' demanded Colonel Futon, looking annoyed.

'Nope,' I replied,' I've been here the whole time. You've just been speaking to my doppelganger.'

They stared at me, mouths agape. 'How could this be possible – I felt the power coming from your doppelganger and followed it,' asked Colonel Futon.

'I figured out a way to push my power through a doppelganger so that the original source is undetectable,' I replied, feeling smug.

'I don't believe it,' whispered Colonel Futon,' when I told you that you should create your own techniques, I never expected you to do it in less than two weeks.'

Deciding that this would be a good time to reveal my other technique, I added,' I also have another thing to show. Can I continue?' Colonel Futon nodded.

I pulled over ten chairs in a circular formation and began to shadow flit as fast as I could. Both Scar and the Colonel were looking around confused. It seemed that I was going so fast that they could not see me. Slowing down, Scar noticed my rapidly appearing and disappearing body and tapped Colonel Futon's shoulder.

'Stop!' called the Colonel, so I did,' what are you doing?'

'I am shadow travelling between the shadow of the chairs,' I reply.

'How can you do it so fast without becoming dizzy or tired?' asked Colonel Futon.

'Well, I not only memorise the look of a place, but all the things my senses will feel so my whole body is prepared for the change, meaning that I do not get dizzy. I have also found that when shadow travelling, if you don't completely leave the shadows, repeated travelling requires very little energy,' I answered.

'Amazing,' breathed Colonel Futon,' I must report this. Do whatever you want… I should be back. If I don't, make sure to meet your squadron at 1pm in the mess hall. Oh, and I was supposed to give you this..'

He threw over a file before dashing out the door. Scar turned to me, and then kowtowed to me. 'Teach me, master!'

Colonel Futon POV:

I don't believe it – Private Phoenix has managed to surprise me again. Two techniques created – one a variant and the other completely new – in two weeks of having the power. Private Phoenix must have immense creativity and understanding of darkness. I have got to report this to General Shredder.

General Shredder looked up sharply. 'Did I hear you correctly? Has Private Phoenix actually created two new techniques? You have seen them?' he inquired.

'Yes,' I replied,' his doppelganger technique is refined to the point that I was tricked by it, even whilst inspecting it very closely. His shadow flitting is very fast and would be a useable technique.'

'While I do not doubt your story, I must see these techniques for myself,' said General Shredder,' you said that he should still be in the arena?' I nod. 'Then lets go there.'

The sight of four figures – Scar and Phoenix, each with a double, greeted us. The version of Scar and Phoenix closest to the entrance were talking to each other, but spun around as soon as we entered and saluted. General Shredder put them at ease and then asked,' Private Phoenix. I have heard that you have created two new techniques. I would like to see evidence of this.'

Private Phoenix nodded before replying, 'Of course, sir. If you wouldn't mind, I will demonstrate my doppelganger technique first. As you can see I have a doppelganger on the other side of the arena. Now, if you would sense the power in this room.'

We did. General Shredder commented,' I see all your power is in the doppelganger and cannot feel anything in you. Are you the doppelganger?'

'No sir,' replied Phoenix,' what I have done is send part of my power into the doppelganger, but kept the controlling part of it inside me. I can control my power, but the power will not come from me, but rather the doppelganger. If I use up the power in the doppelganger, I can use my connection with the doppelganger to transfer some of my latent power into the doppelganger, which is undetectable, as it would look like part of the natural energy flow. This technique does not have many disadvantages, since there is always a connection between the doppelganger and I. This means that I am able to recall the power in an instant. Also, pushing power through the doppelganger does not slow your power down – a shadow shield summoned by a doppelganger will appear just as fast as if it were created directly by the caster. However, it is harder to be accurate as, unless you put yourself fully into the doppelganger, you will not see or sense what the doppelganger can.'

'Impressive,' applauded General Shredder,' If we could have a demonstration.'

'I have been teaching Scar for the last hour, so he will do the demonstration,' Phoenix replied.

Phoenix's doppelganger dissipated and Scar's stood straighter. Scar's doppelganger summoned a shadow shield, then hellfire and then shadow travelled towards us, all in quick succession. Sensing the power around me, I could see that all the power for those moves came from the doppelganger, but nothing from Scar, apart from small wave from him to the doppelganger that would have been unnoticeable unless I had been looking for it. Even then, it looked just like the other multiple energy flows in the air around us.

'Amazing,' breathed General Shredder. It seemed that he hadn't really believed me and was now in shock.

'My second technique, shadow flitting, is not really a new technique, but a variation of shadow travelling. It requires the user to shadow travel between shadows very quickly but not to leave the shadow so as to save energy. To prevent myself becoming dizzy, I had to learn how to memorise or imagine a place with all my senses so that my body would be ready for the change. Scar has not quite mastered that yet, so I will be doing it instead,' finished Phoenix.

Phoenix pulled over a dummy into the centre of the chairs, which had remained untouched. He then began shadow flitting with his sword out. In less than five seconds, the dummy had fallen apart, with its stuffing spread over the ground and hardly any of the Dark Steel casing left. A slow clapping started behind us. We all spun around to see General Storm at the entrance. Scar, Phoenix and I immediately saluted whilst General Shredder merely said,' what are you doing here Storm?'

'At ease gentlemen,' she told us,' I was coming to talk to Colonel Futon about outsourcing training for him and his charges.'

'Why would they need to outsource?' asked General Shredder.

'According to the Colonel, they were recently blessed by the council on Erta. Some of their blessings we have little or no knowledge on so they will be sent away for some time to train with other armies,' General Storm replied coolly.

'You never mentioned that in your mission report,' commented General Shredder to me,' or told me! I thought we were friends!'

'Sorry, sir, but I wanted to keep it as a surprise,' I replied with a smile.

'The Army of Eros has a lieutenant who is the daughter of a death god who has agreed to train you,' General Storm announced,' One of Chronos' Colonels has agreed to train Private Phoenix. A Sergeant Major from the Army of Gaia will train Private Scar as well as a Colonel from the Army of Pontus. That Colonel is willing to train Private Phoenix as well, should he choose to do so.'

Private Phoenix nodded. 'That matter is settled. Now, what was that I just saw?' she asked, still interested.

'That was a variant of shadow travelling called shadow flitting that I came up with,' said Phoenix.

'It seems very effective,' replied General Storm,' You'll have to teach me at some point.' With that, she left.

Phoenix POV:

I am shocked that my techniques have impressed two generals. They each only took me about a day's worth of practise to perfect. I am more shocked by the fact that I am going to be trained by people outside of the Army of Erebus. I had hardly thought about the other armies or even the universe during my time in the Army of Erebus. But now, I was going to train with them. General Shredder spoke,' Since you created a new technique and a variant of an old technique, I believe that you are qualified for the Creator's award Class I and Class II, though I will need to submit it to a General of the Army of Chaos to get it approved. The next meeting is in two days, so you should have it in four to five days. I must go now.'

Once General Shredder has left, Colonel Futon turned to Scar and I. 'I think that you two should head off to lunch with your squadron. If you haven't read the file yet, do it on your way there,' Colonel Futon said before leaving.

Scar looked at his watch – 12:40. We started walking towards the mess hall. I opened up the file and held it up so that Scar could see its contents. It read:

 **Mission Rating:** One Star

 **Assigned to** / Accepted by: 4 Squadron, 12 Platoon, L Company

 **Mission Description:** A group of militants have commandeered a historic building in a residential area of Molan City.

 **Objective:** Kill all militants (32) without damaging the building or any civilians.

 **Estimated time:** 16 hours

'Another mission… yay!'

 **Another chapter for you guys - number 10. I hope you like the story. Please review to tell me what you would like to see in future chapters. Thanks for reading! SR52**


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